Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) Receives $476.29 Consensus Target Price from Analysts

Key Points

• Murphy USA Inc. has received a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from analysts, with an average 12-month price target of approximately $476.29.
• The company's recent earnings report indicated an EPS of $7.36, surpassing the analysts' estimates, although revenue was down 8.2% compared to the previous year.
• Murphy USA recently increased its quarterly dividend to $0.53 per share, with a current yield of 0.5% and a payout ratio of 8.78%.

Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA - Get Free Report) has received an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the ten research firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $476.2857.

MUSA has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Murphy USA from $520.00 to $440.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Zacks Research raised Murphy USA from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded Murphy USA from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $350.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, KeyCorp reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $480.00 price objective on shares of Murphy USA in a report on Friday, September 5th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Murphy USA

In other Murphy USA news, COO Malynda K. West sold 1,859 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $386.22, for a total transaction of $717,982.98. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 117,389 shares in the company, valued at approximately $45,337,979.58. The trade was a 1.56% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Robert Madison Murphy acquired 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $367.01 per share, for a total transaction of $1,835,050.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 389,172 shares in the company, valued at $142,830,015.72. This trade represents a 1.30% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 9.04% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Murphy USA

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in Murphy USA by 53,469.2% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 553,906 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $260,231,000 after purchasing an additional 552,872 shares during the last quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Murphy USA by 24.0% in the 2nd quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 491,641 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $200,000,000 after purchasing an additional 95,259 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Murphy USA by 0.8% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 446,654 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $181,732,000 after acquiring an additional 3,447 shares during the period. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in Murphy USA by 5.4% in the 1st quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. now owns 442,130 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $207,717,000 after acquiring an additional 22,733 shares during the period. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in shares of Murphy USA by 94.0% during the first quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 371,667 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $174,613,000 after purchasing an additional 180,055 shares during the period. 80.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Murphy USA Price Performance

Shares of MUSA traded down $3.26 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $390.28. 160,860 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 294,378. The company has a market capitalization of $7.53 billion, a PE ratio of 16.16 and a beta of 0.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.20, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.39. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $396.07 and a 200-day simple moving average of $434.18. Murphy USA has a one year low of $345.23 and a one year high of $561.08.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The specialty retailer reported $7.36 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.82 by $0.54. The business had revenue of $5.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.17 billion. Murphy USA had a return on equity of 64.63% and a net margin of 2.52%.The company's revenue was down 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $6.92 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Murphy USA will post 26.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 4th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 25th were given a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 25th. This is a positive change from Murphy USA's previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Murphy USA's dividend payout ratio is presently 8.78%.

About Murphy USA

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.