King Luther Capital Management Corp Reduces Stock Holdings in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA)

King Luther Capital Management Corp lessened its holdings in shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) by 1.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 12,539 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 168 shares during the period. King Luther Capital Management Corp owned approximately 0.06% of Murphy USA worth $4,471,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MUSA. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its position in Murphy USA by 101.6% in the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 5,149 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,760,000 after purchasing an additional 2,595 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 34.2% in the 3rd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 153 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $52,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the period. California Public Employees Retirement System grew its position in Murphy USA by 4.6% during the third quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 114,897 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $39,264,000 after buying an additional 5,007 shares during the period. LSV Asset Management increased its holdings in Murphy USA by 3.4% in the third quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 87,730 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $29,980,000 after buying an additional 2,900 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capula Management Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Murphy USA in the third quarter worth about $246,000. 80.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Murphy USA Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of MUSA traded down $2.03 during trading on Thursday, reaching $438.98. 13,445 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 219,155. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $419.15 and a 200-day simple moving average of $391.01. The stock has a market cap of $9.10 billion, a PE ratio of 18.51 and a beta of 0.77. Murphy USA Inc. has a twelve month low of $273.20 and a twelve month high of $447.91. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.28.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The specialty retailer reported $3.12 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.09 by ($0.97). The firm had revenue of $4.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.89 billion. Murphy USA had a net margin of 2.43% and a return on equity of 64.45%. The business’s revenue was down 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $4.80 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Murphy USA Inc. will post 25.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 20th will be given a dividend of $0.44 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 17th. This is an increase from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.40%. Murphy USA’s payout ratio is currently 7.39%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO R Andrew Clyde sold 10,392 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $440.32, for a total value of $4,575,805.44. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 199,563 shares in the company, valued at approximately $87,871,580.16. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, Director Jeanne Linder Phillips sold 1,525 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $411.42, for a total transaction of $627,415.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 2,670 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,098,491.40. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO R Andrew Clyde sold 10,392 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $440.32, for a total transaction of $4,575,805.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 199,563 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $87,871,580.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 14,875 shares of company stock worth $6,439,669. Company insiders own 9.04% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on MUSA shares. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Murphy USA from $382.00 to $408.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Murphy USA from $440.00 to $460.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 19th. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $470.00 price target on shares of Murphy USA in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Murphy USA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $408.60.

About Murphy USA

Murphy USA Inc engages in marketing of retail motor fuel products and convenience merchandise. The company operates retail stores under the Murphy USA, Murphy Express, and QuickChek brands, as well as operates non-fuel convenience stores. It operates retail gasoline stores principally in the Southeast, Southwest, and Midwest United States.