Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) Shares Sold by CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co

CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co reduced its stake in shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA - Free Report) by 16.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 11,148 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 2,125 shares during the period. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co owned approximately 0.06% of Murphy USA worth $5,590,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MUSA. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. US Bancorp DE raised its position in Murphy USA by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 4,444 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $2,230,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Zacks Investment Management grew its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Zacks Investment Management now owns 8,938 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $4,485,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC raised its position 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 worth $485,000 after acquiring an additional 26 shares during the period. Finally, V Square Quantitative Management LLC raised its holdings in Murphy USA by 37.0% in the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 100 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.81% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Murphy USA

In other Murphy USA news, Director Jeanne Linder Phillips sold 797 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $452.31, for a total transaction of $360,491.07. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 2,349 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,062,476.19. The trade was a 25.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CMO Renee M. Bacon sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were 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 owns 5,927 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,783,200.66. This represents a 25.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 3,594 shares of company stock valued at $1,695,043. 9.04% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Murphy USA Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of MUSA traded down $2.53 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $491.69. 34,555 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 203,970. The stock's 50-day moving average is $471.14 and its 200-day moving average is $493.76. The company has a market cap of $9.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.37 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a current ratio of 0.79. Murphy USA Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $382.04 and a fifty-two week high of $561.08.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The specialty retailer reported $6.96 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $6.46 by $0.50. Murphy USA had a net margin of 2.48% and a return on equity of 61.60%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Murphy USA Inc. will post 26.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 5th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 24th were given a $0.49 dividend. This is a boost from Murphy USA's previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.40%. Murphy USA's dividend payout ratio is presently 8.10%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Stephens raised shares of Murphy USA to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 7th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Murphy USA from $555.00 to $550.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Melius Research upgraded shares of Murphy USA to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. KeyCorp started coverage on Murphy USA in a research note on Friday, April 11th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $550.00 price target on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Murphy USA from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Murphy USA currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $539.00.

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.