Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) Hits New 1-Year High at $552.30

Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $552.30 and last traded at $552.30, with a volume of 14936 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $533.25.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MUSA has been the subject of several research reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Murphy USA from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Raymond James lifted their price objective on shares of Murphy USA from $530.00 to $545.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. StockNews.com cut shares of Murphy USA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Murphy USA from $538.00 to $537.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $469.50.

Murphy USA Price Performance

The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $508.26 and its 200 day simple moving average is $459.66. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.20. The company has a market capitalization of $10.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.13 and a beta of 0.77.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The specialty retailer reported $6.92 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.91 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $5.45 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.69 billion. Murphy USA had a return on equity of 64.73% and a net margin of 2.50%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $6.02 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Murphy USA Inc. will post 24.43 EPS for the current year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 5th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 26th were issued a $0.45 dividend. This is a positive change from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 26th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.34%. Murphy USA’s dividend payout ratio is 7.55%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Murphy USA

In other news, Director James W. Keyes sold 2,000 shares of Murphy USA stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $511.54, for a total value of $1,023,080.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 16,114 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,242,955.56. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, Director Robert Madison Murphy sold 13,454 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $514.38, for a total transaction of $6,920,468.52. Following the sale, the director now owns 382,930 shares in the company, valued at $196,971,533.40. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director James W. Keyes sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $511.54, for a total transaction of $1,023,080.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 16,114 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,242,955.56. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 32,209 shares of company stock valued at $16,564,666. 9.04% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Murphy USA

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S raised its position in Murphy USA by 1,091.4% during the first quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 14,464 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $6,063,000 after buying an additional 13,250 shares during the period. Viking Fund Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Murphy USA during the first quarter worth $1,258,000. Sei Investments Co. boosted its position in Murphy USA by 21.2% during the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 16,673 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $6,991,000 after purchasing an additional 2,911 shares during the last quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd purchased a new position in Murphy USA in the fourth quarter valued at about $8,949,000. Finally, CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co lifted its holdings in shares of Murphy USA by 10.3% during the 1st quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 13,461 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $5,646,000 after buying an additional 1,254 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.