Bank of America Corp DE Purchases New Position in Murphy USA Inc. $MUSA

Key Points

• Bank of America acquired 88,870 Murphy USA shares worth approximately $47.9 million during the second quarter, giving it about 0.48% of the company. Institutional investors collectively own 80.81% of Murphy USA.
• Murphy USA reported quarterly EPS of $11.27, exceeding estimates by $1.32, while revenue rose 36% year over year to $6.81 billion. The company also increased its quarterly dividend to $0.65 per share.
• Analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating, with an average price target of $606.89; insider ownership stands at 9.02%, following stock sales by a senior vice president and a director.

Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new position in shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 88,870 shares of the specialty retailer's stock, valued at approximately $47,889,000. Bank of America Corp DE owned approximately 0.48% of Murphy USA at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. WINTON GROUP Ltd acquired a new position in Murphy USA during the 4th quarter worth approximately $6,874,000. Recurrent Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Murphy USA by 23.2% in the first quarter. Recurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 146,119 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $71,986,000 after acquiring an additional 27,513 shares during the period. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky boosted its position in shares of Murphy USA by 130.9% during the 1st quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 12,506 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $6,177,000 after purchasing an additional 7,090 shares in the last quarter. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. purchased a new stake in shares of Murphy USA during the 4th quarter worth $6,946,000. Finally, CenterBook Partners LP lifted its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 145.2% in the fourth quarter. CenterBook Partners LP now owns 9,329 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $3,764,000 after purchasing an additional 5,525 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.81% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Murphy USA

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Murphy USA from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Murphy USA from $600.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, July 10th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and set a $619.00 target price on shares of Murphy USA in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Capital One Financial started coverage on Murphy USA in a report on Monday, June 22nd. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $710.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Murphy USA from $520.00 to $570.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $606.89.

Murphy USA Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MUSA opened at $526.65 on Monday. 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 business's fifty day moving average price is $562.06 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $538.18. The stock has a market cap of $9.73 billion, a PE ratio of 16.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 0.25. Murphy USA Inc. has a one year low of $349.83 and a one year high of $636.04.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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. The business had revenue of $6.81 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.03 billion. Murphy USA had a return on equity of 96.01% and a net margin of 2.87%.The business's revenue was up 36.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $7.36 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Murphy USA Inc. will post 34.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 24th were paid a $0.65 dividend. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 24th. This is an increase from Murphy USA's previous quarterly dividend of $0.64. Murphy USA's dividend payout ratio is presently 7.92%.

Murphy USA Company Profile

Murphy USA Inc NYSE: MUSA operates a network of retail fuel stations and convenience stores in the United States. Its locations primarily serve motorists and local communities, offering gasoline and diesel fuel along with convenience merchandise.

The company's stores sell products such as tobacco, nicotine products, beverages, snacks, packaged food, and other general merchandise. Many locations also provide prepared food and other convenience services, with product offerings designed to complement the company's fuel business.

Murphy USA was established as an independent publicly traded company in 2013 following its separation from Murphy Oil Corporation.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding MUSA? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.