Allianz Asset Management GmbH Sells 3,376 Shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA)

Allianz Asset Management GmbH cut its stake in shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA - Free Report) by 3.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 104,376 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 3,376 shares during the period. Allianz Asset Management GmbH owned about 0.53% of Murphy USA worth $49,037,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Murphy USA by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,864,405 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $935,465,000 after acquiring an additional 54,658 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its stake in Murphy USA by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,783,849 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $895,046,000 after acquiring an additional 32,643 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in Murphy USA by 53,469.2% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 553,906 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $260,231,000 after acquiring an additional 552,872 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in Murphy USA by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 470,602 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $236,125,000 after acquiring an additional 18,097 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Murphy USA by 8.6% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 421,760 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $211,667,000 after acquiring an additional 33,489 shares during the last quarter. 80.81% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Murphy USA from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. KeyCorp reduced their price objective on shares of Murphy USA from $500.00 to $480.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Stephens reduced their price objective on shares of Murphy USA from $530.00 to $475.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Raymond James Financial cut shares of Murphy USA from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $519.86.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director David C. Haley bought 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 27th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $435.58 per share, for a total transaction of $435,580.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 1,000 shares in the company, valued at $435,580. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 9.04% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Murphy USA Stock Performance

Shares of Murphy USA stock traded down $5.76 on Friday, reaching $422.16. The stock had a trading volume of 252,667 shares, compared to its average volume of 238,300. The business's 50-day moving average price is $422.40 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $458.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.74, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a current ratio of 0.80. Murphy USA Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $385.44 and a fifty-two week high of $561.08. The stock has a market cap of $8.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.81 and a beta of 0.48.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The specialty retailer reported $2.63 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.87 by ($1.24). The company had revenue of $4.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.79 billion. Murphy USA had a net margin of 2.46% and a return on equity of 61.19%. Murphy USA's revenue for the quarter was down 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $3.12 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Murphy USA Inc. will post 26.45 EPS for the current year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, May 12th were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This is a boost from Murphy USA's previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.47%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 12th. Murphy USA's dividend payout ratio is presently 8.44%.

About Murphy USA

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.