Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) is Ibex Investors LLC’s 9th Largest Position

Ibex Investors LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) by 46.9% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 850 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 750 shares during the period. Murphy USA comprises approximately 0.4% of Ibex Investors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 9th biggest holding. Ibex Investors LLC’s holdings in Murphy USA were worth $399,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Murphy USA by 3.8% in the 2nd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 784 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $368,000 after acquiring an additional 29 shares during the period. Quadrant Capital Group LLC grew its stake 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 acquiring an additional 30 shares during the period. SYSTM Wealth Solutions LLC grew its stake in Murphy USA by 3.8% in the 1st quarter. SYSTM Wealth Solutions LLC now owns 844 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $354,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in Murphy USA by 5.1% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 643 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $270,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares during the period. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc grew its stake in Murphy USA by 5.6% in the 2nd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 580 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $272,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares during the period. 80.81% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Murphy USA Stock Performance

NYSE:MUSA opened at $515.34 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $509.32 and its 200 day simple moving average is $460.05. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.20. Murphy USA Inc. has a twelve month low of $337.29 and a twelve month high of $552.30. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.63 and a beta of 0.77.

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

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 5th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 26th were given a $0.45 dividend. This is an increase 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 yield of 0.35%. Murphy USA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 7.55%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Robert Madison Murphy sold 16,755 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $514.54, for a total transaction of $8,621,117.70. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 396,384 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $203,955,423.36. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, Director Robert Madison Murphy sold 16,755 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $514.54, for a total value of $8,621,117.70. Following the transaction, the director now owns 396,384 shares in the company, valued at $203,955,423.36. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at 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 shares were sold at an average price of $511.54, for a total value of $1,023,080.00. Following the sale, the director now 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. Insiders have sold 32,209 shares of company stock worth $16,564,666 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 9.04% 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.