Murphy USA Inc. $MUSA Holdings Lifted by Citigroup Inc.

Key Points

• Citigroup Inc. increased its holdings in Murphy USA by 91.6% in Q1, now owning 21,268 shares worth approximately $9.99 million.
• Murphy USA announced a quarterly dividend increase from $0.50 to $0.53, payable on September 4th, which represents a 0.5% dividend yield.
• Despite reporting lower revenue and earnings per share compared to the previous year, Murphy USA's recent performance includes a 1.2% increase in stock price, with a market cap of $7.59 billion.

Citigroup Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA - Free Report) by 91.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 21,268 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 10,169 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc. owned 0.11% of Murphy USA worth $9,992,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Murphy USA by 53,469.2% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 553,906 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $260,231,000 after purchasing an additional 552,872 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in Murphy USA by 61.5% during the 1st quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 252,575 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $118,662,000 after purchasing an additional 96,200 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in Murphy USA by 24.2% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 212,247 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $106,495,000 after purchasing an additional 41,295 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Murphy USA by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 144,973 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $72,301,000 after purchasing an additional 3,025 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in Murphy USA by 1.8% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 144,202 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $67,748,000 after purchasing an additional 2,599 shares during the period. 80.81% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Murphy USA news, Director David C. Haley acquired 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $435.58 per share, for a total transaction of $435,580.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 1,000 shares in the company, valued at $435,580. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, COO Malynda K. West sold 1,859 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $386.22, for a total transaction of $717,982.98. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 117,389 shares in the company, valued at approximately $45,337,979.58. This trade represents a 1.56% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 10.12% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Murphy USA Stock Down 0.5%

Shares of Murphy USA stock traded down $1.9050 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $394.3150. The company had a trading volume of 53,169 shares, compared to its average volume of 293,964. The company has a market cap of $7.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.33 and a beta of 0.42. The firm's fifty day moving average is $405.93 and its 200-day moving average is $446.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.20, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a current ratio of 0.80. Murphy USA Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $345.23 and a fifty-two week high of $561.08.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $6.82 by $0.54. The business had revenue of $5.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.17 billion. Murphy USA had a net margin of 2.52% and a return on equity of 64.63%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $6.92 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate 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 will be paid on Thursday, September 4th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 25th will be paid a $0.53 dividend. This is a boost from Murphy USA's previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 25th. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Murphy USA's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 8.28%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MUSA has been the subject of a number of research reports. Stephens decreased their price target on shares of Murphy USA from $530.00 to $475.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of Murphy USA from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $350.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Friday, August 1st. KeyCorp cut their price objective on shares of Murphy USA from $500.00 to $480.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 25th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Murphy USA from $520.00 to $440.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Raymond James Financial lowered shares of 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 Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $476.29.

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.