Vanguard Group Inc. Raises Stock Holdings in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA)

Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) by 3.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,864,405 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 54,658 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned 9.21% of Murphy USA worth $935,465,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of MUSA. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 6.4% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 347 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $174,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE boosted its position in Murphy USA by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 4,444 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $2,230,000 after buying an additional 24 shares during the period. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC grew its stake in Murphy USA by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC now owns 967 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $485,000 after acquiring an additional 26 shares in the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC increased its position in shares of Murphy USA by 37.0% during the fourth quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 100 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $50,000 after acquiring an additional 27 shares during the period. Finally, Mustard Seed Financial LLC raised its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Mustard Seed Financial LLC now owns 1,123 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $564,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.81% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MUSA has been the topic of several research reports. Melius Research upgraded Murphy USA to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. StockNews.com lowered Murphy USA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. 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. Melius assumed coverage on shares of Murphy USA in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. They set a “buy” rating and a $600.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Murphy USA from $550.00 to $554.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $525.67.

Insider Transactions at Murphy USA

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

Murphy USA Price Performance

MUSA opened at $459.90 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.10 billion, a PE ratio of 19.00 and a beta of 0.80. The business’s 50-day moving average is $471.75 and its two-hundred day moving average is $495.52. Murphy USA Inc. has a 1 year low of $382.04 and a 1 year high of $561.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.37.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 2.48% and a return on equity of 61.60%. Research analysts anticipate that Murphy USA Inc. will post 26.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 5th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 24th were issued a dividend of $0.49 per share. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.43%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. This is a positive change from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. Murphy USA’s dividend payout ratio is currently 8.10%.

Murphy USA 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.