Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) Stock Rating Lowered by StockNews.com

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

Separately, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut shares of Murphy USA from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $415.00 to $435.00 in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Murphy USA has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $509.40.

Murphy USA Stock Down 1.5 %

Murphy USA stock traded down $7.45 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $481.83. The stock had a trading volume of 187,629 shares, compared to its average volume of 162,347. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.88 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a quick ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.19. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $523.10 and its 200-day moving average price is $505.16. Murphy USA has a 12-month low of $350.55 and a 12-month high of $561.08.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The specialty retailer reported $7.20 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.64 by $0.56. The business had revenue of $5.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.54 billion. Murphy USA had a net margin of 2.48% and a return on equity of 62.73%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $7.69 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Murphy USA will post 23.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Murphy USA

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in MUSA. Wedmont Private Capital raised its position in shares of Murphy USA by 19.8% during the 4th quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 1,288 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $630,000 after purchasing an additional 213 shares during the last quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Murphy USA by 580.0% during the 4th quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC now owns 238 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $119,000 after acquiring an additional 203 shares in the last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC increased its stake in Murphy USA by 186.1% during the 4th quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 103 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $52,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the period. First Hawaiian Bank boosted its holdings in Murphy USA by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. First Hawaiian Bank now owns 1,394 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $699,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares during the period. Finally, Oliver Luxxe Assets LLC raised its holdings in Murphy USA by 5.0% in the fourth quarter. Oliver Luxxe Assets LLC now owns 7,488 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $3,757,000 after acquiring an additional 354 shares in the last quarter. 80.81% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.