Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky Sells 300 Shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA)

Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky decreased its position in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) by 4.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 6,766 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 300 shares during the quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky’s holdings in Murphy USA were worth $2,412,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in MUSA. Quadrant Capital Group LLC grew its position in Murphy USA by 19.0% in the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 188 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $67,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Murphy USA by 7.3% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 499 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $170,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC increased its position in shares of Murphy USA by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC now owns 1,437 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $512,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its holdings in Murphy USA by 191.7% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 70 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares during the period. Finally, Neuberger Berman Group LLC boosted its position in Murphy USA by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Neuberger Berman Group LLC now owns 4,943 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,762,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.81% of the company’s stock.

Murphy USA Price Performance

MUSA opened at $481.00 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $435.17 and a 200-day moving average price of $403.43. Murphy USA Inc. has a twelve month low of $282.49 and a twelve month high of $488.62. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.28. The company has a market capitalization of $9.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.18 and a beta of 0.76.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The specialty retailer reported $3.12 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.09 by ($0.97). Murphy USA had a net margin of 2.43% and a return on equity of 64.45%. The business had revenue of $4.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.89 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $4.80 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Murphy USA Inc. will post 24.57 EPS for the current year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 20th were paid a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 17th. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.37%. This is an increase from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. Murphy USA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 7.39%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on MUSA shares. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $470.00 price target on shares of Murphy USA in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. StockNews.com cut shares of Murphy USA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target 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 issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $408.60.

Insider Buying and Selling at Murphy USA

In other news, CEO R Andrew Clyde sold 10,392 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $87,871,580.16. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, CEO R Andrew Clyde sold 10,392 shares of the business’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 directly owns 199,563 shares in the company, valued at approximately $87,871,580.16. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Donald R. Smith, Jr. sold 854 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 21st. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at approximately $8,818,436.25. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 11,451 shares of company stock valued at $5,032,498 in the last quarter. 9.04% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Murphy USA Company Profile

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.