Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) Raised to “Buy” at StockNews.com

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) was upgraded by equities researchers at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued on Thursday.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on Murphy USA from $550.00 to $554.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Melius assumed coverage on Murphy USA in a report on Tuesday. They issued a “buy” rating and a $600.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Murphy USA from $555.00 to $550.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Melius Research upgraded Murphy USA to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $525.67.

Murphy USA Price Performance

MUSA stock opened at $452.64 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $480.75 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $500.46. The stock has a market cap of $9.06 billion, a PE ratio of 18.70 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18. Murphy USA has a 1 year low of $382.04 and a 1 year high of $561.08.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The specialty retailer reported $6.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.46 by $0.50. Murphy USA had a return on equity of 61.60% and a net margin of 2.48%. Equities analysts forecast that Murphy USA will post 26.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Murphy USA news, Director Jeanne Linder Phillips sold 797 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $452.31, for a total transaction of $360,491.07. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 2,349 shares in the company, valued at $1,062,476.19. This trade represents a 25.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CMO Renee M. Bacon sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $469.58, for a total transaction of $939,160.00. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 5,927 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,783,200.66. This trade represents a 25.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 3,594 shares of company stock worth $1,695,043. Company insiders own 9.04% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Murphy USA

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Murphy USA in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $50,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC raised its position in shares of Murphy USA by 37.0% in the fourth quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 100 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC raised its position in shares of Murphy USA by 186.1% in the fourth quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 103 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $52,000 after buying an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Murphy USA in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $55,000. Finally, Johnson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Murphy USA in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $64,000. 80.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.