London Co. of Virginia Trims Position in Murphy USA Inc. $MUSA

Key Points

• London Co. of Virginia trimmed its Murphy USA stake by 1.6% in Q1, selling 2,787 shares and ending with 167,528 shares worth about $82.8 million.
• Murphy USA reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $7.28 versus the $5.37 consensus and revenue of $4.82 billion, up 6.5% year over year.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed but constructive: the stock has a Moderate Buy consensus with an average price target of $585.11, while Murphy USA also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.64 per share.

London Co. of Virginia trimmed its holdings in shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA - Free Report) by 1.6% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 167,528 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 2,787 shares during the period. London Co. of Virginia owned approximately 0.91% of Murphy USA worth $82,759,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. WINTON GROUP Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Murphy USA during the fourth quarter worth $6,874,000. Evergreen Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Murphy USA in the fourth quarter valued at $1,333,000. Millennium Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Murphy USA during the 4th quarter worth about $1,029,000. Dakota Wealth Management acquired a new stake in Murphy USA during the 4th quarter worth about $1,134,000. Finally, VELA Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 45.4% during the 4th quarter. VELA Investment Management LLC now owns 9,765 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $3,940,000 after buying an additional 3,051 shares during the last quarter. 80.81% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Zacks Research cut Murphy USA from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, June 22nd. KeyCorp lifted their price target on Murphy USA from $600.00 to $680.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, June 12th. Weiss Ratings raised Murphy USA from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Murphy USA from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $380.00 to $550.00 in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Murphy USA from $510.00 to $517.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $585.11.

Murphy USA Price Performance

Shares of Murphy USA stock opened at $613.40 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.24. Murphy USA Inc. has a twelve month low of $345.23 and a twelve month high of $636.04. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $566.52 and a 200 day moving average price of $499.00. The firm has a market cap of $11.33 billion, a PE ratio of 21.20, a P/E/G ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 0.30.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The specialty retailer reported $7.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $5.37 by $1.91. The company had revenue of $4.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.70 billion. Murphy USA had a return on equity of 91.05% and a net margin of 2.81%.Murphy USA's quarterly revenue was up 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.63 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Murphy USA Inc. will post 32.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 18th were given a $0.64 dividend. This represents a $2.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. This is a boost from Murphy USA's previous quarterly dividend of $0.63. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 18th. Murphy USA's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 8.85%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Murphy USA

In related news, SVP Keith A. Emery sold 517 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $574.49, for a total value of $297,011.33. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 500 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $287,245. The trade was a 50.84% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Scott G. Woodward sold 158 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $600.50, for a total transaction of $94,879.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 476 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $285,838. The trade was a 24.92% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 46,225 shares of company stock worth $27,363,392. 9.02% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Murphy USA Company 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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