Ensign Peak Advisors Inc Grows Position in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA)

Ensign Peak Advisors Inc grew its stake in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA - Free Report) by 74.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,620 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after acquiring an additional 4,956 shares during the quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc owned 0.06% of Murphy USA worth $5,830,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in MUSA. Barclays PLC boosted its holdings in Murphy USA by 46.4% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 9,890 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $4,874,000 after acquiring an additional 3,135 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 69.9% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 428,379 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $211,135,000 after purchasing an additional 176,308 shares during the last quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 580.0% in the fourth quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC now owns 238 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $119,000 after purchasing an additional 203 shares during the last quarter. Wedmont Private Capital lifted its holdings in shares of Murphy USA by 19.8% during the fourth quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 1,288 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $630,000 after purchasing an additional 213 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Oak Thistle LLC bought a new position in shares of Murphy USA during the fourth quarter valued at $1,207,000. 80.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on MUSA shares. Raymond James downgraded Murphy USA from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Melius Research raised Murphy USA to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Murphy USA from $550.00 to $554.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. 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. Finally, KeyCorp lowered their price target on Murphy USA from $550.00 to $525.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $526.29.

Murphy USA Stock Performance

MUSA stock traded up $6.05 during trading on Friday, reaching $457.00. The stock had a trading volume of 341,903 shares, compared to its average volume of 210,140. Murphy USA Inc. has a 52 week low of $424.03 and a 52 week high of $561.08. The stock's 50 day moving average is $474.38 and its two-hundred day moving average is $493.02. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18. The firm has a market cap of $9.03 billion, a PE ratio of 18.88 and a beta of 0.59.

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

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 12th will be paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 12th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.44%. This is an increase from Murphy USA's previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. Murphy USA's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 8.44%.

Insider Transactions at Murphy USA

In related news, Director Jeanne Linder Phillips sold 797 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $452.31, for a total transaction of $360,491.07. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 2,349 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,062,476.19. This trade represents a 25.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CMO Renee M. Bacon sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $469.58, for a total value of $939,160.00. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 5,927 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,783,200.66. This represents a 25.23% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 9.04% of the company's stock.

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.