Global Retirement Partners LLC Increases Stock Position in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA)

Global Retirement Partners LLC boosted its stake in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) by 88.5% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 801 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 376 shares during the quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC’s holdings in Murphy USA were worth $395,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of MUSA. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in Murphy USA by 777.8% in the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 79 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. raised its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 141.4% during the second quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 70 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Murphy USA during the first quarter worth approximately $69,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 82.1% during the second quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 173 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $81,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 25.6% during the second quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 201 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $94,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. 80.81% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Murphy USA Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of Murphy USA stock opened at $479.68 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.20, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a current ratio of 0.84. Murphy USA Inc. has a 52-week low of $350.55 and a 52-week high of $552.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.13 and a beta of 0.77. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $502.42 and its 200-day moving average price is $472.07.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The specialty retailer reported $6.92 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.91 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $5.45 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.69 billion. Murphy USA had a net margin of 2.50% and a return on equity of 64.73%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $6.02 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Murphy USA Inc. will post 24.14 EPS for the current year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 5th. Investors of record on Monday, August 26th were issued a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 26th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.38%. This is a boost from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. Murphy USA’s payout ratio is 7.55%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on MUSA shares. StockNews.com raised shares of Murphy USA from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded shares of Murphy USA from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $415.00 to $435.00 in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. Raymond James lifted their price target on shares of Murphy USA from $530.00 to $545.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Murphy USA from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on shares of Murphy USA from $538.00 to $537.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $464.57.

Insider Activity at Murphy USA

In related news, Director Robert Madison Murphy sold 13,454 shares of Murphy USA stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $514.38, for a total value of $6,920,468.52. Following the sale, the director now owns 382,930 shares in the company, valued at $196,971,533.40. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other Murphy USA news, Director Robert Madison Murphy sold 13,454 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $514.38, for a total transaction of $6,920,468.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 382,930 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $196,971,533.40. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director James W. Keyes sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the director now directly owns 16,114 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,242,955.56. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. 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. Corporate 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.