SG Americas Securities LLC Decreases Stock Position in Murphy USA Inc. $MUSA

Key Points

• SG Americas Securities LLC slashed its Murphy USA stake by 96.5% in the first quarter, selling 127,811 shares and leaving it with 4,639 shares worth about $2.29 million.
• Murphy USA reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $7.28 topping estimates and revenue of $4.82 billion, up 6.5% year over year.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.64 per share, while analysts currently have a Moderate Buy consensus with an average price target of $573.88.

SG Americas Securities LLC cut its holdings in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA - Free Report) by 96.5% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,639 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 127,811 shares during the quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC's holdings in Murphy USA were worth $2,292,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of MUSA. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 82.4% in the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 62 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares during the last quarter. Huntington National Bank boosted its position in shares of Murphy USA by 106.7% during the fourth quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 62 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. bought a new stake in Murphy USA in the 3rd quarter worth about $26,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in Murphy USA by 423.1% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 68 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Finally, V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new position in Murphy USA in the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Institutional investors own 80.81% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Diane N. Landen sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $547.25, for a total value of $1,641,750.00. Following the sale, the director owned 53,841 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $29,464,487.25. This represents a 5.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Scott G. Woodward sold 158 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $600.50, for a total value of $94,879.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 476 shares of the company's stock, valued at $285,838. This represents a 24.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 46,225 shares of company stock worth $27,363,392. Company insiders own 9.02% of the company's stock.

Murphy USA Stock Performance

NYSE MUSA opened at $558.74 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.32 billion, a PE ratio of 19.31, a P/E/G ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 0.29. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $552.42 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $476.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.24, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.48. Murphy USA Inc. has a 1-year low of $345.23 and a 1-year high of $636.04.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The specialty retailer reported $7.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $5.37 by $1.91. Murphy USA had a net margin of 2.81% and a return on equity of 91.05%. The company had revenue of $4.82 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.70 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.63 earnings per share. Murphy USA's revenue was up 6.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Murphy USA Inc. will post 32.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 18th were issued a $0.64 dividend. This is a positive change from Murphy USA's previous quarterly dividend of $0.63. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 18th. This represents a $2.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Murphy USA's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 8.85%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on MUSA. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Murphy USA from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $550.00 to $625.00 in a report on Wednesday. Zacks Research cut Murphy USA from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, June 22nd. KeyCorp raised their price target on Murphy USA from $600.00 to $680.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, June 12th. Weiss Ratings raised Murphy USA from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective 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. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $573.88.

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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