Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) Reaches New 52-Week High After Analyst Upgrade

Key Points

• Bank of America upgrade pushed Murphy USA to a new 52-week high after the firm raised its rating from underperform to neutral and lifted the price target to $550 (from $350), with the stock trading intraday as high as $539.71.
• Murphy USA beat EPS estimates ($7.53 vs. $6.67) but slightly missed revenue expectations, and the company shows a PE of 21.56 and a very high ROE of 75.75%.
• Despite recent upgrades, the consensus remains a Hold with an average price target of $469.14, while insiders have sold roughly 10,919 shares (about $4.49M) over the past 90 days.

Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday after Bank of America upgraded the stock from an underperform rating to a neutral rating. Bank of America now has a $550.00 price target on the stock, up from their previous price target of $350.00. Murphy USA traded as high as $539.71 and last traded at $523.6010, with a volume of 23637 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $519.78.

Other analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded Murphy USA from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, March 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on Murphy USA in a research note on Thursday, March 26th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $539.00 price objective for the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Murphy USA in a report on Monday, December 29th. KeyCorp set a $500.00 target price on Murphy USA in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Murphy USA from $400.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $469.14.

Insider Buying and Selling at Murphy USA

In other Murphy USA news, SVP Scott G. Woodward sold 137 shares of Murphy USA stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $422.44, for a total value of $57,874.28. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Renee M. Bacon sold 2,844 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $388.61, for a total value of $1,105,206.84. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 3,083 shares in the company, valued at $1,198,084.63. This trade represents a 47.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 10,919 shares of company stock worth $4,490,690. 9.02% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in MUSA. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised 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 acquiring an additional 28 shares during the period. Huntington National Bank grew its position in shares of 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. Ameriflex Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Murphy USA during the third quarter worth about $26,000. AlphaQuest LLC increased its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 317.6% during the third quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 71 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Murphy USA by 423.1% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 68 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.81% of the company's stock.

Murphy USA Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.47, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.69 billion, a PE ratio of 21.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.47 and a beta of 0.23. The stock's 50 day moving average is $455.83 and its two-hundred day moving average is $416.61.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The specialty retailer reported $7.53 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $6.67 by $0.86. The business had revenue of $4.74 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.88 billion. Murphy USA had a return on equity of 75.75% and a net margin of 2.43%.The business's revenue was up .7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $6.96 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Murphy USA Inc. will post 25.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Murphy USA Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 23rd. Murphy USA's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 10.38%.

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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