Callan Family Office LLC Sells 2,203 Shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA)

Key Points

• Callan Family Office LLC decreased its position in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) by 43.6% in the first quarter, reducing their holdings to 2,851 shares worth approximately $1.34 million.
• Several institutional investors have increased their stakes in Murphy USA, with Independent Advisor Alliance raising its holdings by 4.9% during the same period.
• Analyst ratings for Murphy USA have been revised downwards, with a variety of price targets set between $350.00 and $530.00 and an average rating classified as "Moderate Buy."

Callan Family Office LLC reduced its stake in shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA - Free Report) by 43.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,851 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 2,203 shares during the quarter. Callan Family Office LLC's holdings in Murphy USA were worth $1,339,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Independent Advisor Alliance grew its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 4.9% in the first quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 489 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $230,000 after purchasing an additional 23 shares in the last quarter. Zacks Investment Management grew its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 0.3% in the fourth 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 in the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue grew its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 1.2% in the first quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 2,130 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $1,000,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE grew its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 0.7% in the first quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 4,473 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $2,101,000 after purchasing an additional 29 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Applied Capital LLC FL grew its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 5.9% in the first quarter. Applied Capital LLC FL now owns 557 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $262,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. 80.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Murphy USA Stock Up 1.2%

MUSA stock traded up $4.76 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $393.42. The stock had a trading volume of 177,794 shares, compared to its average volume of 371,033. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.20. Murphy USA Inc. has a 1-year low of $345.23 and a 1-year high of $561.08. The company has a fifty day moving average of $406.95 and a 200 day moving average of $447.75. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.29 and a beta of 0.42.

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

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 4th. Investors of record on Monday, August 25th will be paid a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 25th. This is a positive change from Murphy USA's previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Murphy USA's dividend payout ratio is currently 8.28%.

Insider Activity at Murphy USA

In related news, COO Malynda K. West sold 1,859 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $386.22, for a total transaction of $717,982.98. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 117,389 shares in the company, valued at $45,337,979.58. This represents a 1.56% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director David C. Haley acquired 1,000 shares of Murphy USA stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 27th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $435.58 per share, with a total value of $435,580.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 1,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $435,580. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 9.04% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MUSA has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group lowered 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. Stephens cut their price objective on Murphy USA from $530.00 to $475.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 9th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Murphy USA from $520.00 to $440.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 1st. KeyCorp cut their price objective on Murphy USA from $500.00 to $480.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Raymond James Financial lowered Murphy USA from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $476.29.

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.