Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) Given Average Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) has been given an average recommendation of “Hold” by the eleven analysts that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, six have given a hold recommendation, three have assigned a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $474.00.

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on MUSA shares. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on shares of Murphy USA in a research report on Wednesday, October 15th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $405.00 target price on the stock. Bank of America began coverage on Murphy USA in a report on Friday. They set an “underperform” rating on the stock. Zacks Research raised Murphy USA from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th. KeyCorp dropped their target price on Murphy USA from $480.00 to $460.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 23rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Murphy USA in a report on Monday, December 29th.

Murphy USA Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MUSA opened at $427.08 on Monday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $390.69 and a 200-day moving average of $391.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.07, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a current ratio of 0.81. Murphy USA has a twelve month low of $345.23 and a twelve month high of $523.09. The firm has a market cap of $8.00 billion, a PE ratio of 18.01 and a beta of 0.39.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The specialty retailer reported $7.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 firm’s quarterly revenue was down 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $7.20 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Murphy USA will post 26.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

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

Insider Activity at Murphy USA

In other news, CEO Malynda K. West sold 4,051 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $425.00, for a total value of $1,721,675.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 117,389 shares in the company, valued at $49,890,325. This trade represents a 3.34% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO R Andrew Clyde sold 24,733 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $381.33, for a total value of $9,431,434.89. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 131,024 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $49,963,381.92. This represents a 15.88% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 45,034 shares of company stock worth $17,349,722 over the last 90 days. 10.12% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Murphy USA

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Barclays PLC increased its position in shares of Murphy USA by 318.6% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 424,818 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $164,940,000 after acquiring an additional 323,331 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Murphy USA in the 2nd quarter worth $93,967,000. Neuberger Berman Group LLC increased its holdings in Murphy USA by 3,650.7% during the 2nd quarter. Neuberger Berman Group LLC now owns 180,858 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $73,573,000 after purchasing an additional 176,036 shares in the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 676.7% in the 2nd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 170,215 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $69,243,000 after purchasing an additional 148,301 shares during the period. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC raised its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 1,723.1% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 132,450 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $53,446,000 after purchasing an additional 125,185 shares during the period. 80.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.