Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) Coverage Initiated at KeyCorp

Stock analysts at KeyCorp started coverage on shares of Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) in a report issued on Friday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The firm set an “overweight” rating and a $550.00 price target on the specialty retailer’s stock. KeyCorp’s price target points to a potential upside of 6.89% from the company’s previous close.

Other research analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Melius began coverage on shares of Murphy USA in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $600.00 target price for the company. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Murphy USA from $550.00 to $554.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Stephens raised Murphy USA to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 7th. StockNews.com upgraded Murphy USA from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Melius Research raised Murphy USA to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $539.00.

Murphy USA Trading Up 6.7 %

Shares of NYSE:MUSA opened at $514.54 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a current ratio of 0.79. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.26 and a beta of 0.73. Murphy USA has a 1-year low of $382.04 and a 1-year high of $561.08. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $468.08 and a 200 day moving average price of $492.49.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last issued its earnings results 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 return on equity of 61.60% and a net margin of 2.48%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Murphy USA will post 26.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CMO Renee M. Bacon sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $469.58, for a total value of $939,160.00. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 5,927 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,783,200.66. This trade represents a 25.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Jeanne Linder Phillips sold 797 shares of Murphy USA stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at $1,062,476.19. The trade was a 25.33 % 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 over the last quarter. Insiders own 9.04% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. NBC Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in Murphy USA by 111,400.0% in the 1st quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 1,115 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $523,000 after purchasing an additional 1,114 shares during the period. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 36.2% in the first quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 591 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $278,000 after buying an additional 157 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in Murphy USA by 53,469.2% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 553,906 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $260,231,000 after buying an additional 552,872 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in Murphy USA by 9.7% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 8,539 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $4,284,000 after acquiring an additional 755 shares during the period. Finally, California State Teachers Retirement System raised its holdings in Murphy USA by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 19,060 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $9,563,000 after acquiring an additional 363 shares in the last quarter. 80.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.