Q1 Earnings Estimate for Murphy USA Issued By Zacks Research

Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) – Investment analysts at Zacks Research dropped their Q1 2026 earnings estimates for Murphy USA in a report released on Tuesday, January 6th. Zacks Research analyst Team now forecasts that the specialty retailer will post earnings of $2.81 per share for the quarter, down from their prior forecast of $2.85. Zacks Research currently has a “Hold” rating on the stock. The consensus estimate for Murphy USA’s current full-year earnings is $26.45 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Murphy USA’s Q3 2026 earnings at $6.96 EPS, Q4 2026 earnings at $7.10 EPS, Q3 2027 earnings at $6.90 EPS, Q4 2027 earnings at $7.24 EPS and FY2027 earnings at $27.11 EPS.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 29th. The specialty retailer reported $7.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.60 by $0.65. The business had revenue of $5.11 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.11 billion. Murphy USA had a net margin of 2.43% and a return on equity of 69.87%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $7.20 earnings per share.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on the stock. KeyCorp dropped their price objective on shares of Murphy USA from $480.00 to $460.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on Murphy USA in a report on Wednesday, October 15th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $405.00 target price for the company. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Murphy USA in a report on Monday, December 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $474.00.

Murphy USA Trading Up 0.7%

Shares of MUSA opened at $428.79 on Wednesday. Murphy USA has a fifty-two week low of $345.23 and a fifty-two week high of $523.09. The company has a market capitalization of $8.03 billion, a PE ratio of 18.08 and a beta of 0.39. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $389.30 and a two-hundred day moving average of $391.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.07, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a current ratio of 0.81.

Institutional Trading of Murphy USA

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of MUSA. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Murphy USA by 10.2% in the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 1,685 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $792,000 after purchasing an additional 156 shares during the last quarter. Caxton Associates LLP acquired a new position in shares of Murphy USA in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $799,000. United Services Automobile Association acquired a new position in shares of Murphy USA in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $536,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 9.2% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 61,612 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $28,946,000 after buying an additional 5,184 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bayforest Capital Ltd grew its position in shares of Murphy USA by 103.3% during the first quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 744 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $350,000 after buying an additional 378 shares in the last quarter. 80.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Malynda K. West sold 4,051 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $425.00, for a total transaction of $1,721,675.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 117,389 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $49,890,325. The trade was a 3.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO R Andrew Clyde sold 16,250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $381.33, for a total transaction of $6,196,612.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 59,172 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $22,564,058.76. The trade was a 21.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 45,034 shares of company stock worth $17,349,722 in the last quarter. Insiders own 9.04% of the company’s stock.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 10th were given a $0.63 dividend. This represents a $2.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. This is a positive change from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.53. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 10th. Murphy USA’s dividend payout ratio is 10.63%.

Trending Headlines about Murphy USA

Here are the key news stories impacting Murphy USA this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.63 (annualized $2.52), up from $0.53, with a low payout ratio (~10.6%) — supports income investors and signals confidence in cash flow. MarketBeat — Murphy USA
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks Research nudged up FY2027 EPS and several quarterly estimates modestly (FY2027 to $27.11), indicating slightly improved forward earnings expectations (rating remains “Hold”).
• Neutral Sentiment: High institutional ownership (~80.8%) and small changes in institutional positions noted — limits volatility from retail flows but means moves can reflect large portfolio rebalancing.
• Neutral Sentiment: Consensus analyst view remains mixed-to-positive (average price target ~$474, consensus “Moderate Buy”) — supportive but not unanimous upside.
• Negative Sentiment: CEO Malynda West sold 4,051 shares at ~$425 for ~$1.72M (3.34% reduction in her stake). Insider sales can create near-term selling pressure or negative sentiment among investors. InsiderTrades — CEO Sale SEC Form 4
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks trimmed a couple of near-term quarter estimates (Q1 2026 and Q4 2026 down slightly), signaling some short-term earnings risk even as longer-term estimates tick up.

Murphy USA Company Profile

Murphy USA is a leading downstream marketer of gasoline, diesel and convenience store products in the United States. Headquartered in El Dorado, Arkansas, the company was originally established as part of Murphy Oil Corporation and was spun off as an independent public entity in 2013. Since its separation, Murphy USA has focused on retail fueling services and convenience offerings designed to deliver value and convenience to consumers.

The company’s primary operations center on two retail formats.