M&T Bank Corp Acquires 19,121 Shares of Murphy USA Inc. $MUSA

Key Points

• M&T Bank Corp boosted its stake in Murphy USA by 1,224.1%, buying 19,121 shares in Q4 to hold 20,683 shares (about 0.11% of the company) valued at roughly $8.35 million.
• Insiders have been net sellers recently — 10,919 shares worth $4.49 million were sold in the last 90 days (including transactions by the SVP and a director); corporate insiders now own 9.02% of the stock.
• Analysts are mixed: the consensus rating is Hold with an average price target of $483.43, although firms like KeyCorp, Bank of America and JPMorgan have issued higher targets and more positive ratings.

M&T Bank Corp boosted its holdings in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA - Free Report) by 1,224.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 20,683 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 19,121 shares during the quarter. M&T Bank Corp owned approximately 0.11% of Murphy USA worth $8,346,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its stake in Murphy USA by 82.4% in the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 62 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares during the period. Ameriflex Group Inc. bought a new position in Murphy USA in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Murphy USA by 423.1% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 68 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the period. AlphaQuest LLC boosted its stake in Murphy USA by 317.6% in the 3rd quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 71 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the period. Finally, V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in Murphy USA in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. 80.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Murphy USA

In related news, SVP Eric J. Bartko sold 345 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $404.84, for a total transaction of $139,669.80. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 352 shares in the company, valued at approximately $142,503.68. This represents a 49.50% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Jeanne Linder Phillips sold 1,155 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $395.19, for a total value of $456,444.45. Following the sale, the director owned 1,543 shares in the company, valued at $609,778.17. The trade was a 42.81% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 10,919 shares of company stock worth $4,490,690 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 9.02% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on MUSA shares. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Murphy USA in a research note on Monday, December 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on Murphy USA in a report on Thursday, March 26th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $539.00 price objective on the stock. Bank of America raised Murphy USA from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $350.00 to $550.00 in a report on Thursday. Stephens decreased their price objective on Murphy USA from $475.00 to $450.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 6th. Finally, KeyCorp upped their price objective on Murphy USA from $560.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $483.43.

Murphy USA Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of MUSA opened at $531.28 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.50 and a beta of 0.23. Murphy USA Inc. has a 1 year low of $345.23 and a 1 year high of $539.71. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $461.26 and its 200-day simple moving average is $418.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.47, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.36.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 75.75% and a net margin of 2.43%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $6.96 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Murphy USA Inc. will post 26.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Murphy USA Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 5th. Investors of record on Monday, February 23rd were issued a dividend of $0.63 per share. This represents a $2.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 23rd. Murphy USA's dividend payout ratio is presently 10.38%.

About Murphy USA

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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