Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC Raises Stake in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA)

Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) by 42.0% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,590 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 470 shares during the quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Murphy USA were worth $784,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of MUSA. Norden Group LLC purchased a new stake in Murphy USA during the first quarter worth $461,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its holdings in Murphy USA by 13.0% in the first quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 15,730 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $6,594,000 after acquiring an additional 1,807 shares during the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC purchased a new position in Murphy USA during the first quarter worth about $476,000. Davidson Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Murphy USA by 1.1% during the first quarter. Davidson Capital Management Inc. now owns 5,991 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $2,511,000 after acquiring an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. raised its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 19.0% in the 1st quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 1,277 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $535,000 after acquiring an additional 204 shares during the period. 80.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MUSA has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. StockNews.com cut Murphy USA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, October 26th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted 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. Raymond James raised their price target on Murphy USA from $530.00 to $545.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut shares of Murphy USA from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $415.00 to $435.00 in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on Murphy USA from $538.00 to $537.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $495.33.

Murphy USA Price Performance

MUSA stock opened at $492.01 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $10.08 billion, a PE ratio of 20.30 and a beta of 0.75. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $495.70 and its two-hundred day moving average is $476.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.19. Murphy USA Inc. has a 52-week low of $350.55 and a 52-week high of $552.30.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The specialty retailer reported $7.20 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.64 by $0.56. The company had revenue of $5.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.54 billion. Murphy USA had a return on equity of 62.73% and a net margin of 2.48%. The business’s revenue was down 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $7.69 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Murphy USA Inc. will post 24.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 4th will be paid a $0.48 dividend. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.39%. This is a boost from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 4th. Murphy USA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 7.43%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Robert Madison Murphy sold 13,454 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $196,971,533.40. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, Director Robert Madison Murphy sold 13,454 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $514.38, for a total value of $6,920,468.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 382,930 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $196,971,533.40. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director James W. Keyes sold 2,000 shares of Murphy USA 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 sale, the director now directly owns 16,114 shares in the company, valued at $8,242,955.56. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 9.73% of the company’s stock.

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.