Capital World Investors Grows Position in Murphy USA Inc. $MUSA

Key Points

• Capital World Investors raised its stake in Murphy USA by 3.9% to 188,664 shares (about 1.01% of the company), and institutional investors now own roughly 80.81% of the stock.
• Murphy USA beat EPS estimates with $7.53 for the quarter (vs. $6.67 expected) but reported revenue of $4.74 billion slightly below forecasts; the company has a market cap of $8.42 billion and a P/E of 18.71.
• Insiders have been net sellers (14,970 shares worth $6.21M in the last 90 days) while analysts hold a consensus "Hold" rating with a $429 target, and the company pays a $0.63 quarterly dividend (annual $2.52, ~0.6% yield).

Capital World Investors grew its position in shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA - Free Report) by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 188,664 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 7,145 shares during the quarter. Capital World Investors owned approximately 1.01% of Murphy USA worth $73,251,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in MUSA. Swiss National Bank raised its position in shares of Murphy USA by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 36,367 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $14,120,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its stake in Murphy USA by 17.3% during the 3rd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 6,014 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $2,336,000 after buying an additional 888 shares in the last quarter. Flavin Financial Services Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Murphy USA by 45.0% during the third quarter. Flavin Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,786 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $693,000 after acquiring an additional 554 shares during the last quarter. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG raised its holdings in shares of Murphy USA by 9.9% during the third quarter. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG now owns 775 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $301,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ameriflex Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Murphy USA in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. 80.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Murphy USA Trading Up 2.1%

MUSA opened at $454.38 on Friday. Murphy USA Inc. has a 52 week low of $345.23 and a 52 week high of $523.09. The company has a quick ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.47. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $415.57 and a 200-day simple moving average of $395.21. The firm has a market cap of $8.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.71, a P/E/G ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 0.40.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The specialty retailer reported $7.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.67 by $0.86. The business had revenue of $4.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.88 billion. Murphy USA had a net margin of 2.43% and a return on equity of 75.75%. The business's quarterly revenue was up .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $6.96 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Murphy USA Inc. will post 26.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Murphy USA Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 5th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 23rd were issued a dividend of $0.63 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 23rd. This represents a $2.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. Murphy USA's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 10.38%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Murphy USA

In related news, SVP Renee M. Bacon sold 2,844 shares of Murphy USA stock in a transaction on Monday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $388.61, for a total transaction of $1,105,206.84. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 3,083 shares in the company, valued at $1,198,084.63. This trade represents a 47.98% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Eric J. Bartko sold 345 shares of Murphy USA stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $404.84, for a total value of $139,669.80. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 352 shares in the company, valued at approximately $142,503.68. This trade represents a 49.50% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 14,970 shares of company stock worth $6,212,365. 9.04% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have weighed in on MUSA. Bank of America began coverage on Murphy USA in a report on Friday, January 9th. They issued an "underperform" rating on the stock. Stephens reduced their target price on shares of Murphy USA from $475.00 to $450.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Murphy USA from $410.00 to $400.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 6th. KeyCorp set a $500.00 price target on shares of Murphy USA in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of Murphy USA from $467.00 to $445.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Murphy USA currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $429.00.

Murphy USA Profile

Murphy USA is a leading downstream marketer of gasoline, diesel and convenience store products in the United States. Headquartered in El Dorado, Arkansas, the company was originally established as part of Murphy Oil Corporation and was spun off as an independent public entity in 2013. Since its separation, Murphy USA has focused on retail fueling services and convenience offerings designed to deliver value and convenience to consumers.

The company's primary operations center on two retail formats.

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