Allianz Asset Management GmbH Boosts Stake in Murphy USA Inc. $MUSA

Key Points

• Allianz Asset Management increased its stake in Murphy USA Inc. by 10.8%, acquiring an additional 11,273 shares, bringing its total holdings to 115,649 shares valued at approximately $47 million.
• Murphy USA declared a quarterly dividend of $0.53, an increase from the previous $0.50, reflecting a commitment to returning value to shareholders.
• Despite reporting a net margin of 2.52% and a decline in quarterly revenue by 8.2% year-over-year, the company beat EPS estimates, posting $7.36 compared to a consensus of $6.82.

Allianz Asset Management GmbH raised its position in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA - Free Report) by 10.8% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 115,649 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 11,273 shares during the quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH owned 0.59% of Murphy USA worth $47,046,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bridges Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Murphy USA by 15.0% in the 2nd quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,646 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $1,890,000 after purchasing an additional 606 shares during the period. Bayforest Capital Ltd raised its position in Murphy USA by 33.7% in the 2nd quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 995 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $405,000 after purchasing an additional 251 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB raised its position in Murphy USA by 35,700.0% in the 2nd quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 6,802 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $2,767,000 after purchasing an additional 6,783 shares during the period. Moran Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Murphy USA by 2.5% in the 2nd quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC now owns 46,848 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $19,058,000 after purchasing an additional 1,161 shares during the period. Finally, Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. raised its position in Murphy USA by 5.1% in the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 1,250 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $509,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the period. 80.81% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO Malynda K. West sold 1,859 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $386.22, for a total value of $717,982.98. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 117,389 shares in the company, valued at approximately $45,337,979.58. The trade was a 1.56% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Robert Madison Murphy purchased 5,000 shares of Murphy USA stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 5th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $367.01 per share, with a total value of $1,835,050.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 389,172 shares in the company, valued at approximately $142,830,015.72. This represents a 1.30% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 9.04% of the company's stock.

Murphy USA Trading Up 2.3%

NYSE:MUSA opened at $388.42 on Friday. Murphy USA Inc. has a one year low of $345.23 and a one year high of $561.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.20, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a current ratio of 0.80. The firm has a market cap of $7.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.08 and a beta of 0.42. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $384.77 and a 200-day simple moving average of $421.45.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The specialty retailer reported $7.36 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.82 by $0.54. Murphy USA had a net margin of 2.52% and a return on equity of 64.63%. The business had revenue of $5.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.17 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $6.92 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was down 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Murphy USA Inc. will post 26.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 4th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 25th were issued a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 25th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. This is an increase from Murphy USA's previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Murphy USA's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 8.78%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MUSA has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. KeyCorp reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $480.00 price objective on shares of Murphy USA in a research report on Friday, September 5th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of Murphy USA from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $350.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Friday, August 1st. Zacks Research lowered shares of Murphy USA from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Monday, October 6th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Murphy USA in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on shares of Murphy USA in a report on Wednesday. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $405.00 price objective for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $477.33.

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.

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