Murphy USA Inc. $MUSA Shares Sold by First Trust Advisors LP

Key Points

• First Trust Advisors LP cut its Murphy USA stake by 25.7% in the first quarter, selling 5,142 shares and retaining 14,899 shares valued at approximately $7.36 million. Institutional investors collectively own 80.81% of the company.
• Murphy USA insiders sold 46,225 shares worth $27.36 million over the past quarter, including significant sales by Director Diane N. Landen and SVP Keith A. Emery.
• The company reported quarterly EPS of $7.28, beating estimates by $1.91, while revenue rose 6.5% year over year to $4.82 billion. Murphy USA also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.64 per share, and analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with a $596.44 average price target.

First Trust Advisors LP lessened its holdings in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA - Free Report) by 25.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 14,899 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 5,142 shares during the quarter. First Trust Advisors LP owned 0.08% of Murphy USA worth $7,360,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Kenora Financial LLC increased its holdings in shares of Murphy USA by 3.3% during the first quarter. Kenora Financial LLC now owns 654 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $323,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. Enhancing Capital LLC boosted its stake in Murphy USA by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Enhancing Capital LLC now owns 1,132 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $457,000 after purchasing an additional 23 shares in the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. grew its position in Murphy USA by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 1,752 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $707,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Murphy USA by 3.0% during the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 864 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $427,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its stake in Murphy USA by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 1,470 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $571,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.81% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Diane N. Landen sold 3,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $547.25, for a total transaction of $1,641,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 53,841 shares in the company, valued at $29,464,487.25. The trade was a 5.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Keith A. Emery sold 517 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $574.49, for a total transaction of $297,011.33. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 500 shares of the company's stock, valued at $287,245. This represents a 50.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 46,225 shares of company stock valued at $27,363,392 over the last quarter. Insiders own 9.02% of the company's stock.

Murphy USA Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MUSA opened at $608.99 on Friday. Murphy USA Inc. has a twelve month low of $345.23 and a twelve month high of $636.04. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.24. The company has a market cap of $11.25 billion, a PE ratio of 21.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 0.30. The company's 50 day moving average is $571.98 and its 200 day moving average is $505.47.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The specialty retailer reported $7.28 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.37 by $1.91. The business had revenue of $4.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.70 billion. Murphy USA had a net margin of 2.81% and a return on equity of 91.05%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.63 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Murphy USA Inc. will post 32.58 EPS for the current year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 1st. Investors of record on Monday, May 18th were issued a dividend of $0.64 per share. This represents a $2.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. This is a boost from Murphy USA's previous quarterly dividend of $0.63. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 18th. Murphy USA's dividend payout ratio is 8.85%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Murphy USA from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday, June 27th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Murphy USA from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, June 22nd. KeyCorp upped their target price on Murphy USA from $600.00 to $680.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, June 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Murphy USA from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $380.00 to $550.00 in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Finally, Capital One Financial initiated coverage on Murphy USA in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. They set an "overweight" rating and a $710.00 price target for the company. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $596.44.

Murphy USA Profile

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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