Brown Advisory Inc. Has $46.21 Million Position in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA)

Brown Advisory Inc. cut its holdings in shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA - Free Report) by 11.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 92,097 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 12,494 shares during the quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. owned approximately 0.45% of Murphy USA worth $46,210,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. bought a new position in shares of Murphy USA in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $50,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC raised its holdings in Murphy USA by 37.0% during the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 100 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 27 shares during the last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC boosted its position in Murphy USA by 186.1% during the 4th quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 103 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $52,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the period. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Murphy USA in the fourth quarter valued at about $55,000. Finally, Johnson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in Murphy USA during the 4th quarter valued at about $64,000. 80.81% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CMO Renee M. Bacon sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $469.58, for a total transaction of $939,160.00. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 5,927 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,783,200.66. This represents a 25.23 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Jeanne Linder Phillips sold 797 shares of Murphy USA stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $452.31, for a total transaction of $360,491.07. Following the sale, the director now owns 2,349 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,062,476.19. This represents a 25.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 3,594 shares of company stock worth $1,695,043 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 9.04% of the company's stock.

Murphy USA Stock Performance

NYSE MUSA traded up $1.40 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $445.45. 783,272 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 206,116. Murphy USA Inc. has a 1 year low of $422.66 and a 1 year high of $561.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a current ratio of 0.79. The business's 50 day moving average is $476.03 and its 200-day moving average is $494.21. The company has a market capitalization of $8.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.41 and a beta of 0.59.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The specialty retailer reported $2.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $3.87 by ($1.24). The company had revenue of $4.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.79 billion. Murphy USA had a net margin of 2.48% and a return on equity of 61.60%. Murphy USA's revenue for the quarter was down 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.12 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Murphy USA Inc. will post 26.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, May 12th will be given a $0.50 dividend. This is an increase from Murphy USA's previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 12th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.45%. Murphy USA's dividend payout ratio is 8.44%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on MUSA shares. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Murphy USA from $555.00 to $550.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 7th. Melius began coverage on shares of Murphy USA in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $600.00 target price on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on Murphy USA from $550.00 to $554.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Stephens lowered their price objective on Murphy USA from $530.00 to $475.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Finally, Melius Research upgraded Murphy USA to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $526.29.

Murphy USA Company Profile

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.