VELA Investment Management LLC Has $3.94 Million Holdings in Murphy USA Inc. $MUSA

Key Points

• VELA Investment Management raised its Murphy USA stake 45.4% in Q4 to 9,765 shares worth $3.94 million, equal to roughly 0.05% of the company.
• Strong Q1 results — EPS $7.28 vs. $5.37 consensus and $4.82B revenue — have driven analyst upgrades, higher targets and momentum that pushed the stock to a 52‑week high.
• At the same time, insider selling has been heavy (10,919 shares, $4.49M sold last quarter) despite ~80.8% institutional ownership, creating a potential sentiment/governance risk.

VELA Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA - Free Report) by 45.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 9,765 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after acquiring an additional 3,051 shares during the period. VELA Investment Management LLC owned approximately 0.05% of Murphy USA worth $3,940,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. NBC Securities Inc. lifted its position in Murphy USA by 1.4% during the fourth 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 period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC lifted its position in Murphy USA by 4.8% during the third quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 585 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $227,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares during the period. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its position in Murphy USA by 82.4% during 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 period. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its position in Murphy USA by 1.9% during the third quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 1,470 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $571,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares during the period. Finally, Verus Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in Murphy USA by 5.6% during the third quarter. Verus Capital Partners LLC now owns 568 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $221,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the period. 80.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Trending Headlines about Murphy USA

Here are the key news stories impacting Murphy USA this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 results materially beat expectations — EPS of $7.28 vs. consensus ~$5.37, fuel contribution and merchandise margins both improved, and the company continued buybacks and a dividend; these operational beats are the primary driver of the rally. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrades and model raises: Zacks moved MUSA to a stronger recommendation and several shops (KeyCorp, Zacks team) have nudged EPS and longer-term estimates higher, supporting a higher valuation case. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Momentum / market interest: coverage pieces note MUSA at a 52‑week high and classify it as a strong momentum/growth stock — that can attract momentum and quant flows. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst opinions and price targets are mixed — KeyCorp and some shops have $600+ targets while the median across recent reports is below the current price, producing both upside and tail‑risk narratives for different investors. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Wells Fargo set an "equal weight" stance and raised its target to $520 — still below the current market level — which could cap further upside from some institutional holders. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling has been heavy in recent months (multiple senior exec sales), which some investors view as a governance or near-term sentiment risk. Read More.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on MUSA shares. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on shares of Murphy USA from $510.00 to $517.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Thursday. Zacks Research raised shares of Murphy USA from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on shares of Murphy USA in a report on Thursday, March 26th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $539.00 target price for the company. Bank of America raised shares of Murphy USA from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $350.00 to $550.00 in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Murphy USA from $450.00 to $520.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $503.71.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Jeanne Linder Phillips sold 1,155 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $395.19, for a total value of $456,444.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 1,543 shares in the company, valued at $609,778.17. This trade represents a 42.81% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Keith A. Emery sold 899 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $382.53, for a total transaction of $343,894.47. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 10,919 shares of company stock worth $4,490,690 over the last quarter. 9.02% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Murphy USA Stock Up 1.3%

Shares of NYSE MUSA opened at $595.84 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $472.53 and a 200 day simple moving average of $423.24. The firm has a market cap of $11.02 billion, a PE ratio of 20.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 0.36. Murphy USA Inc. has a 1 year low of $345.23 and a 1 year high of $597.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.24, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.36.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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. The business had revenue of $4.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.70 billion. Murphy USA had a net margin of 2.81% and a return on equity of 91.05%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 6.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.63 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Murphy USA Inc. will post 29.66 EPS for the current year.

Murphy USA Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 5th. Investors of record on Monday, February 23rd were issued a $0.63 dividend. This represents a $2.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 23rd. Murphy USA's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 8.71%.

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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