Murphy USA Inc. $MUSA Shares Sold by Bryn Mawr Trust Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Bryn Mawr Trust Advisors LLC cut its Murphy USA stake by 45.2% in the fourth quarter, leaving it with 8,400 shares valued at about $3.39 million.
• Murphy USA reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $7.28 beating estimates and revenue of $4.82 billion topping expectations; revenue also rose 6.5% year over year.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.64 per share, while analysts currently maintain a consensus rating of Moderate Buy with an average price target of $503.71.

Bryn Mawr Trust Advisors LLC trimmed its holdings in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA - Free Report) by 45.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,400 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 6,926 shares during the period. Bryn Mawr Trust Advisors LLC's holdings in Murphy USA were worth $3,390,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Barclays PLC raised its position in shares of Murphy USA by 318.6% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 424,818 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $164,940,000 after acquiring an additional 323,331 shares in the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its position in shares of Murphy USA by 676.7% during the 2nd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 170,215 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $69,243,000 after acquiring an additional 148,301 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its position in shares of Murphy USA by 1,723.1% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 132,450 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $53,446,000 after acquiring an additional 125,185 shares in the last quarter. Recurrent Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Murphy USA by 4,972.5% during the 3rd quarter. Recurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 100,942 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $39,192,000 after acquiring an additional 98,952 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Murphy USA by 66.0% during the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 203,064 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $78,842,000 after acquiring an additional 80,702 shares in the last quarter. 80.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on MUSA shares. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on Murphy USA from $510.00 to $517.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on Murphy USA in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $539.00 price target on the stock. KeyCorp upped their price target on Murphy USA from $560.00 to $600.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Wall Street Zen raised Murphy USA from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered Murphy USA from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $503.71.

Murphy USA Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MUSA opened at $577.68 on Friday. Murphy USA Inc. has a 1-year low of $345.23 and a 1-year high of $609.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.24, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.48. The business's fifty day moving average price is $484.36 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $427.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.69 billion, a PE ratio of 19.97, a P/E/G ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.36.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The specialty retailer reported $7.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.37 by $1.91. Murphy USA had a return on equity of 91.05% and a net margin of 2.81%.The firm had revenue of $4.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.70 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.63 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 6.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Murphy USA Inc. will post 31.8 EPS for the current year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.64 per share. This represents a $2.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. This is a positive change from Murphy USA's previous quarterly dividend of $0.63. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 18th. Murphy USA's dividend payout ratio is 8.71%.

Insider Activity at Murphy USA

In other news, SVP Renee M. Bacon sold 2,844 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $388.61, for a total transaction of $1,105,206.84. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 3,083 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,198,084.63. This trade represents a 47.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Eric J. Bartko sold 345 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $404.84, for a total value of $139,669.80. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 352 shares in the company, valued at $142,503.68. This trade represents a 49.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders sold 48,610 shares of company stock valued at $27,574,259. 9.02% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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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