Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) Shares Sold by American Century Companies Inc.

American Century Companies Inc. lessened its position in shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) by 23.1% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 29,604 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 8,881 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. owned approximately 0.14% of Murphy USA worth $13,898,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of MUSA. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Murphy USA by 777.8% in the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 79 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the period. Mather Group LLC. raised its holdings in shares of Murphy USA by 141.4% during the 2nd quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 70 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the period. Quadrant Capital Group LLC lifted its position in Murphy USA by 19.0% during 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 in the last quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC purchased a new position in Murphy USA in the 1st quarter worth approximately $69,000. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its position in Murphy USA by 25.6% in the second quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 201 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $94,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.81% of the company’s stock.

Murphy USA Stock Up 0.8 %

NYSE:MUSA opened at $496.47 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.20, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a current ratio of 0.84. The company has a market capitalization of $10.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.83 and a beta of 0.77. Murphy USA Inc. has a one year low of $338.80 and a one year high of $552.30. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $510.17 and a 200 day simple moving average of $461.19.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The specialty retailer reported $6.92 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 business had revenue of $5.45 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.69 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $6.02 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Murphy USA Inc. will post 24.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 5th. Investors of record on Monday, August 26th were given a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.36%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 26th. This is an increase from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. Murphy USA’s dividend payout ratio is currently 7.55%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on MUSA shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded shares of Murphy USA from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and upped their target price for the company from $415.00 to $435.00 in a research note on Thursday. Raymond James upped their price objective on shares of Murphy USA from $530.00 to $545.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. StockNews.com lowered Murphy USA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 17th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on Murphy USA from $538.00 to $537.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Murphy USA from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $464.57.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Robert Madison Murphy sold 16,755 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the director now owns 396,384 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $203,955,423.36. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, Director Robert Madison Murphy sold 16,755 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $514.54, for a total value of $8,621,117.70. Following the sale, the director now owns 396,384 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $203,955,423.36. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director James W. Keyes sold 2,000 shares of Murphy USA stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $511.54, for a total transaction of $1,023,080.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 16,114 shares in the company, valued at $8,242,955.56. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 32,209 shares of company stock worth $16,564,666 over the last quarter. 9.04% of the stock is owned by company 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.