Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) SVP Eric Bartko Sells 100 Shares of Stock

Key Points

• Insider sale: Murphy USA SVP Eric Bartko sold 100 shares at an average price of $523.60, reducing his holdings by 28.41% to 252 shares.
• Stock and earnings: Shares traded near $521.41, while the company’s latest quarterly results exceeded expectations, with EPS of $11.27 and revenue of $6.81 billion, up 36% year over year.
• Investor outlook: Murphy USA raised its quarterly dividend to $0.65, and analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $606.89.

Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA - Get Free Report) SVP Eric Bartko sold 100 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $523.60, for a total transaction of $52,360.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 252 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $131,947.20. The trade was a 28.41% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Murphy USA Price Performance

Shares of Murphy USA stock traded up $0.94 on Thursday, hitting $521.41. 179,721 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 330,342. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 0.25. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $571.70 and a 200 day moving average price of $527.48. Murphy USA Inc. has a 1-year low of $349.83 and a 1-year high of $636.04. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.77.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The specialty retailer reported $11.27 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $9.95 by $1.32. Murphy USA had a return on equity of 96.01% and a net margin of 2.87%.The firm had revenue of $6.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.03 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $7.36 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 36.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Murphy USA Inc. will post 34.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 24th will be paid a $0.65 dividend. This is a boost from Murphy USA's previous quarterly dividend of $0.64. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 24th. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Murphy USA's dividend payout ratio is 7.92%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MUSA has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Murphy USA from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 26th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Murphy USA from $520.00 to $570.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, July 20th. KeyCorp raised their price target on shares of Murphy USA from $600.00 to $680.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, June 12th. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Murphy USA from $600.00 to $625.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Murphy USA from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price objective for the company from $550.00 to $625.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $606.89.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Murphy USA

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Huntington National Bank raised its position in Murphy USA by 106.7% in the fourth quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 62 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Murphy USA by 423.1% during the second 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 period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Murphy USA during the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Root Financial Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 82.5% in the first quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 73 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Keating Financial Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Murphy USA in the second quarter valued at $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.81% of the company's stock.

Murphy USA Company 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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