Murphy USA Inc. $MUSA Shares Bought by Millennium Management LLC

Millennium Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA - Free Report) by 2,594.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 142,038 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after acquiring an additional 136,766 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC owned about 0.72% of Murphy USA worth $66,731,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. GW&K Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Murphy USA in the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. TCTC Holdings LLC grew its stake in Murphy USA by 116.7% in the 1st quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 65 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Murphy USA during the 1st quarter worth about $40,000. Costello Asset Management INC acquired a new stake in shares of Murphy USA during the 1st quarter worth about $47,000. Finally, WPG Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Murphy USA during the 1st quarter worth about $48,000. 80.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Robert Madison Murphy acquired 5,000 shares of Murphy USA stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 5th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $367.01 per share, with a total value of $1,835,050.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 389,172 shares of the company's stock, valued at $142,830,015.72. This trade represents a 1.30% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, COO Malynda K. West sold 1,859 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $386.22, for a total transaction of $717,982.98. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 117,389 shares of the company's stock, valued at $45,337,979.58. The trade was a 1.56% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 9.04% of the company's stock.

Murphy USA Stock Performance

Shares of MUSA traded down $3.33 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $390.21. 304,083 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 265,616. The business's 50 day moving average price is $395.46 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $433.43. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.53 billion, a PE ratio of 16.16 and a beta of 0.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.20, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a current ratio of 0.80. Murphy USA Inc. has a 1-year low of $345.23 and a 1-year high of $561.08.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The specialty retailer reported $7.36 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.82 by $0.54. The firm had revenue of $5.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.17 billion. Murphy USA had a net margin of 2.52% and a return on equity of 64.63%. Murphy USA's quarterly revenue was down 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $6.92 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Murphy USA Inc. will post 26.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

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.