Murphy USA Inc. $MUSA Shares Sold by Empowered Funds LLC

Key Points

• Empowered Funds LLC reduced its stake in Murphy USA Inc. by 7.3%, now owning 11,994 shares valued at approximately $5.6 million.
• Several institutional investors significantly increased their holdings in Murphy USA, with GAMMA Investing LLC raising its stake by over 53,000% to 553,906 shares worth $260.2 million.
• Murphy USA announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.53, reflecting a payout ratio of 8.78% and a yield of 0.5%.

Empowered Funds LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA - Free Report) by 7.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 11,994 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 944 shares during the quarter. Empowered Funds LLC owned 0.06% of Murphy USA worth $5,635,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in MUSA. United Services Automobile Association acquired a new position in Murphy USA during the first quarter worth $536,000. Caxton Associates LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Murphy USA in the 1st quarter valued at $799,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Murphy USA by 10.2% during the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 1,685 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $792,000 after acquiring an additional 156 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC boosted its holdings in Murphy USA by 2,594.2% during the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 142,038 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $66,731,000 after acquiring an additional 136,766 shares during the period. Finally, Advisors Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Murphy USA by 6.1% during the 1st quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 5,453 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $2,562,000 after acquiring an additional 314 shares during the period. 80.81% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Murphy USA Stock Up 1.3%

MUSA stock traded up $5.19 during trading on Monday, hitting $395.38. 278,779 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 295,141. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $395.46 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $433.25. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.37 and a beta of 0.44. Murphy USA Inc. has a 52-week low of $345.23 and a 52-week high of $561.08.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The specialty retailer reported $7.36 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $6.82 by $0.54. The company had revenue of $5.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.17 billion. Murphy USA had a net margin of 2.52% and a return on equity of 64.63%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $6.92 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Murphy USA Inc. will post 26.45 EPS for the current year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Robert Madison Murphy bought 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $367.01 per share, for a total transaction of $1,835,050.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 389,172 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $142,830,015.72. This trade represents a 1.30% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, COO Malynda K. West sold 1,859 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $386.22, for a total value 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 10.12% 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.