Millennium Management LLC Raises Position in Murphy USA Inc. $MUSA

Millennium Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA - Free Report) by 2,594.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 142,038 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 136,766 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC owned 0.72% of Murphy USA worth $66,731,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of MUSA. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Murphy USA in the first quarter worth $241,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Murphy USA during the 1st quarter worth about $40,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new position in Murphy USA in the 1st quarter valued at about $3,683,000. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its stake in Murphy USA by 21.1% in the 1st quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 1,210 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $568,000 after purchasing an additional 211 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd lifted its holdings in Murphy USA by 81.9% in the 1st quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd now owns 1,812 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $851,000 after purchasing an additional 816 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.81% of the company's stock.

Murphy USA Trading Down 0.7%

Shares of MUSA traded down $2.58 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $390.97. The company had a trading volume of 192,442 shares, compared to its average volume of 294,499. Murphy USA Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $345.23 and a fifty-two week high of $561.08. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $396.07 and a 200-day simple moving average of $434.18. The stock has a market cap of $7.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.19 and a beta of 0.44. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.20.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The specialty retailer reported $7.36 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $6.82 by $0.54. Murphy USA had a return on equity of 64.63% and a net margin of 2.52%.The business had revenue of $5.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.17 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $6.92 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Murphy USA Inc. will post 26.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 4th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 25th were paid a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 25th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. This is an increase from Murphy USA's previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Murphy USA's dividend payout ratio is presently 8.78%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. KeyCorp reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $480.00 price target on shares of Murphy USA in a report on Friday, September 5th. Zacks Research raised shares of Murphy USA from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 20th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Murphy USA from $520.00 to $440.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lowered Murphy USA from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $350.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Friday, August 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $476.29.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Robert Madison Murphy bought 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 5th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $367.01 per share, for a total transaction of $1,835,050.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 389,172 shares of the company's stock, valued at $142,830,015.72. This trade represents a 1.30% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, COO Malynda K. West sold 1,859 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 directly owned 117,389 shares of the company's stock, 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. Insiders own 9.04% of the company's stock.

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.