AXQ Capital LP Makes New $297,000 Investment in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA)

AXQ Capital LP acquired a new position in shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 592 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $297,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 5.4% in the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 391 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $193,000 after buying an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. increased its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 6.4% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 347 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $174,000 after buying an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE increased its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 0.5% in the fourth 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 in the last quarter. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC now owns 967 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $485,000 after buying an additional 26 shares in the last quarter. Finally, V Square Quantitative Management LLC increased its stake 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. 80.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Murphy USA

In related news, CMO Renee M. Bacon sold 2,000 shares of the business’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 value of $939,160.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 5,927 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,783,200.66. The trade was a 25.23 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Jeanne Linder Phillips sold 797 shares of the business’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 value of $360,491.07. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 2,349 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,062,476.19. This represents a 25.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 3,594 shares of company stock worth $1,695,043. 9.04% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Murphy USA Price Performance

Murphy USA stock opened at $440.45 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.20 and a beta of 0.80. Murphy USA Inc. has a 1 year low of $382.04 and a 1 year high of $561.08. The business has a 50-day moving average of $474.38 and a 200-day moving average of $497.22. 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 (NYSE:MUSA) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The specialty retailer reported $6.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.46 by $0.50. Murphy USA had a return on equity of 61.60% and a net margin of 2.48%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Murphy USA Inc. will post 26.45 EPS for the current year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 5th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th were given a $0.49 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. This is a positive change from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.44%. Murphy USA’s payout ratio is currently 8.10%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on Murphy USA from $550.00 to $554.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. StockNews.com cut Murphy USA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company dropped 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 Research raised Murphy USA to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Melius started coverage on Murphy USA in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. They set a “buy” rating and a $600.00 price objective for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $525.67.

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.