Vanguard Group Inc. Has $707.73 Million Stake in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA)

Vanguard Group Inc. lowered its position in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) by 1.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,984,888 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 19,474 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned 9.54% of Murphy USA worth $707,732,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 35,556.0% during the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 269,916 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $96,241,000 after purchasing an additional 269,159 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Murphy USA during the fourth quarter worth $81,560,000. Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in Murphy USA by 30.8% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 308,398 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $105,389,000 after buying an additional 72,537 shares in the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado lifted its position in shares of Murphy USA by 518.9% in the fourth quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado now owns 74,770 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $26,660,000 after buying an additional 62,688 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 1,146.7% during the 4th quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 64,193 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $22,889,000 after acquiring an additional 59,044 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.81% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Murphy USA

In related news, CEO R Andrew Clyde sold 10,392 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $440.32, for a total transaction 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 filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Murphy USA news, Director Rosemary Turner sold 205 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $400.00, for a total value of $82,000.00. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO R Andrew Clyde sold 10,392 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $440.32, for a total transaction of $4,575,805.44. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 199,563 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $87,871,580.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 11,451 shares of company stock worth $5,032,498. Company insiders own 9.04% of the company’s stock.

Murphy USA Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MUSA opened at $479.55 on Friday. Murphy USA Inc. has a 12 month low of $282.49 and a 12 month high of $488.62. The company has a market cap of $9.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.12 and a beta of 0.76. The business’s 50 day moving average is $436.51 and its two-hundred day moving average is $404.49. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.28.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The specialty retailer reported $3.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.09 by ($0.97). Murphy USA had a return on equity of 64.45% and a net margin of 2.43%. The company had revenue of $4.84 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.89 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $4.80 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that Murphy USA Inc. will post 24.57 EPS for the current year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 20th were given a dividend of $0.44 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 17th. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.37%. This is a positive change from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. Murphy USA’s dividend payout ratio is currently 7.39%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on MUSA. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Murphy USA from $440.00 to $460.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, April 19th. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $470.00 price objective on shares of Murphy USA in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Murphy USA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Murphy USA currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $408.60.

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.