Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) Stock Position Lowered by Moran Wealth Management LLC

Moran Wealth Management LLC lessened its stake in shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA - Free Report) by 3.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 45,687 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 1,560 shares during the quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC owned 0.23% of Murphy USA worth $21,464,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Sanctuary Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Murphy USA by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 3,210 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $1,616,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc boosted its position in Murphy USA by 5.4% in the 4th quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 630 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $316,000 after buying an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 25.8% during the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 1,008 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $506,000 after acquiring an additional 207 shares in the last quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC increased its position in shares of Murphy USA by 120.6% during the fourth quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 2,334 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $1,171,000 after acquiring an additional 1,276 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wolverine Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 110.3% in the fourth quarter. Wolverine Asset Management LLC now owns 346 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $174,000 after acquiring an additional 3,700 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.81% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director David C. Haley bought 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $435.58 per share, with a total value of $435,580.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 1,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $435,580. This represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 10.12% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Murphy USA Stock Performance

Shares of Murphy USA stock traded down $9.31 on Tuesday, reaching $415.90. 729,808 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 288,138. The firm has a market cap of $8.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.54 and a beta of 0.50. Murphy USA Inc. has a 1-year low of $385.44 and a 1-year 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's 50-day moving average is $453.68 and its two-hundred day moving average is $474.25.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The specialty retailer reported $2.63 earnings per share 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.79 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.12 earnings per share. Murphy USA's quarterly revenue was down 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Murphy USA Inc. will post 26.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 12th were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.48%. This is a positive change from Murphy USA's previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 12th. Murphy USA's payout ratio is presently 8.44%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on MUSA. Melius began coverage on Murphy USA in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. They set a "buy" rating and a $600.00 price objective for the company. Melius Research raised shares of Murphy USA to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Raymond James Financial lowered shares of Murphy USA from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. KeyCorp reduced their price objective 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. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Murphy USA from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $526.29.

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.