Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) Price Target Cut to $537.00 by Analysts at Royal Bank of Canada

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) had its target price decreased by Royal Bank of Canada from $538.00 to $537.00 in a report released on Thursday morning, Benzinga reports. Royal Bank of Canada currently has a sector perform rating on the specialty retailer’s stock.

Several other research firms have also commented on MUSA. StockNews.com lowered shares of Murphy USA from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report on Thursday. Raymond James boosted their price objective on shares of Murphy USA from $425.00 to $530.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Stephens reiterated an overweight rating and set a $470.00 price objective on shares of Murphy USA in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective 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. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $469.50.

Murphy USA Price Performance

NYSE MUSA traded down $4.51 on Thursday, reaching $508.63. The company had a trading volume of 209,614 shares, compared to its average volume of 214,056. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.54 billion, a PE ratio of 21.29 and a beta of 0.77. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $473.54 and its 200 day moving average price is $430.22. Murphy USA has a 12 month low of $297.36 and a 12 month high of $521.54.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The specialty retailer reported $6.92 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.91 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $5.45 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.69 billion. Murphy USA had a net margin of 2.50% and a return on equity of 64.73%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $6.02 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Murphy USA will post 24.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 20th were issued a $0.44 dividend. This is an increase from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.35%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 17th. Murphy USA’s dividend payout ratio is 7.39%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Murphy USA news, VP Donald R. Smith, Jr. sold 854 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $438.75, for a total transaction of $374,692.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 20,099 shares in the company, valued at $8,818,436.25. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Murphy USA news, CEO R Andrew Clyde sold 10,392 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 199,563 shares in the company, valued at $87,871,580.16. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Donald R. Smith, Jr. sold 854 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $438.75, for a total value of $374,692.50. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 20,099 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,818,436.25. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 9.04% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of MUSA. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its stake in Murphy USA by 191.7% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 70 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Murphy USA during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Murphy USA by 777.8% in the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 79 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. increased its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 141.4% in the second quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 70 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JFS Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 394.7% in the 4th quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 94 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.81% of the company’s stock.

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.