Murphy USA Inc. (MUSA) to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $0.72 on December 1st

Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) announced a quarterly dividend on Thursday, October 22nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.72 per share by the specialty retailer on Tuesday, December 1st. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 4th. This is a 10.8% increase from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65.

Murphy USA has increased its dividend by an average of 0.5% annually over the last three years and has raised its dividend annually for the last 4 consecutive years. Murphy USA has a payout ratio of 9.3% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect Murphy USA to earn $30.23 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $2.60 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 8.6%.

Murphy USA Trading Up 0.5%

Murphy USA stock opened at $534.56 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $527.83 and a 200 day moving average price of $547.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.77, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.28, a P/E/G ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 0.29. Murphy USA has a 52 week low of $349.83 and a 52 week high of $636.04.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The specialty retailer reported $11.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $9.95 by $1.32. Murphy USA had a return on equity of 96.01% and a net margin of 2.87%. The business had revenue of $6.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.03 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $7.36 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 36.0% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Murphy USA will post 34.89 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Murphy USA news, SVP Eric J. Bartko sold 100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $523.60, for a total transaction of $52,360.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 252 shares in the company, valued at $131,947.20. This represents a 28.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Rosemary Turner sold 966 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $571.88, for a total value of $552,436.08. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 449 shares in the company, valued at approximately $256,774.12. This represents a 68.27% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 9.02% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Murphy USA

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Leeward Investments LLC MA grew its holdings in Murphy USA by 65.9% during the 3rd quarter. Leeward Investments LLC MA now owns 34,007 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $17,141,000 after acquiring an additional 13,507 shares during the period. EULAV Asset Management boosted its stake in Murphy USA by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter. EULAV Asset Management now owns 50,406 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $25,406,000 after purchasing an additional 2,001 shares during the last quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI bought a new stake in Murphy USA during the third quarter worth $267,000. Simplicity Wealth LLC raised its holdings in shares of Murphy USA by 57.0% in the third quarter. Simplicity Wealth LLC now owns 2,153 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,085,000 after purchasing an additional 782 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Murphy USA by 7.5% in the third quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 926 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $467,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. 80.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Murphy USA Company Profile

Murphy USA Inc is a U.S. operator of retail fuel and convenience stores. The company sells gasoline and diesel fuel along with tobacco products, packaged beverages, snacks, candy, grocery items, general merchandise and other convenience products. Many locations also offer prepared food and related services.

The company operates stores under the Murphy USA and Murphy Express brands, with a network concentrated primarily in the Southern, Southeastern and Midwestern United States. Murphy USA locations are commonly situated near Walmart stores, while Murphy Express sites generally operate as standalone convenience stores.