Keybank National Association OH Raises Stock Position in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA)

Keybank National Association OH grew its position in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA - Free Report) by 34.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,508 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after buying an additional 637 shares during the period. Keybank National Association OH's holdings in Murphy USA were worth $1,178,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of MUSA. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Murphy USA during the 1st quarter worth approximately $40,000. CX Institutional acquired a new stake in Murphy USA in the 1st quarter valued at $59,000. Johnson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Murphy USA in the 4th quarter valued at $64,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Murphy USA in the 4th quarter valued at $67,000. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its stake in Murphy USA by 63.5% in the 1st quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 157 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $75,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares during the period. 80.81% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. 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. KeyCorp lowered their target price on shares of Murphy USA from $550.00 to $525.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Murphy USA from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Melius assumed coverage on shares of Murphy USA in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. They set a "buy" rating and a $600.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Melius Research raised shares of Murphy USA to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. One equities 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 assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $526.29.

Insider Transactions at Murphy USA

In related news, Director David C. Haley acquired 1,000 shares of Murphy USA stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $435.58 per share, for a total transaction of $435,580.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 1,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $435,580. This represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 9.04% of the company's stock.

Murphy USA Trading Up 2.7%

Shares of NYSE MUSA traded up $11.11 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $424.47. 209,838 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 228,412. Murphy USA Inc. has a 12-month low of $385.44 and a 12-month high of $561.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.74, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a current ratio of 0.80. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $432.89 and a 200-day moving average price of $465.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.39 billion, a PE ratio of 17.90 and a beta of 0.48.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly 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). Murphy USA had a return on equity of 61.19% and a net margin of 2.46%. The company had revenue of $4.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.79 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.12 EPS. The firm's revenue was down 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Murphy USA Inc. will post 26.45 EPS for the current year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, May 12th were issued a $0.50 dividend. This is a positive change 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 of this dividend was Monday, May 12th. Murphy USA's payout ratio is 8.44%.

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.