Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) CEO Malynda West Sells 4,051 Shares of Stock

Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) CEO Malynda West sold 4,051 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $425.00, for a total transaction of $1,721,675.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 117,389 shares in the company, valued at $49,890,325. This trade represents a 3.34% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink.

Murphy USA Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE:MUSA opened at $426.25 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $387.96 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $391.74. The company has a market cap of $7.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.98 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.07, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.40. Murphy USA Inc. has a one year low of $345.23 and a one year high of $523.09.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The specialty retailer reported $7.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.60 by $0.65. The business had revenue of $5.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.11 billion. Murphy USA had a return on equity of 69.87% and a net margin of 2.43%.The company’s quarterly revenue was down 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $7.20 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Murphy USA Inc. will post 26.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 10th were given a dividend of $0.63 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 10th. This is a boost from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.53. This represents a $2.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. Murphy USA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 10.63%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MUSA has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on shares of Murphy USA in a report on Wednesday, October 15th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $405.00 price objective for the company. Zacks Research raised Murphy USA from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th. KeyCorp reduced their price objective on Murphy USA from $480.00 to $460.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 23rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Murphy USA in a report on Monday, December 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $474.00.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Murphy USA

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB grew its stake in Murphy USA by 82.4% in the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 62 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares during the period. Ameriflex Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Murphy USA during the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. AlphaQuest LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Murphy USA by 317.6% during the 3rd quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 71 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Murphy USA by 423.1% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 68 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the period. Finally, Ameritas Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Murphy USA in the 2nd quarter worth about $29,000. 80.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Murphy USA Company Profile

Murphy USA is a leading downstream marketer of gasoline, diesel and convenience store products in the United States. Headquartered in El Dorado, Arkansas, the company was originally established as part of Murphy Oil Corporation and was spun off as an independent public entity in 2013. Since its separation, Murphy USA has focused on retail fueling services and convenience offerings designed to deliver value and convenience to consumers.

The company’s primary operations center on two retail formats.