Nomura Holdings Inc. Invests $3.26 Million in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA)

Nomura Holdings Inc. bought a new position in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm bought 6,503 shares of the specialty retailer's stock, valued at approximately $3,263,000.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Murphy USA during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $112,741,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 69.9% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 428,379 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $211,135,000 after acquiring an additional 176,308 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Murphy USA during the fourth quarter worth $53,777,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Murphy USA by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,864,405 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $935,465,000 after buying an additional 54,658 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its position in shares of Murphy USA by 363.2% during the fourth quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 54,471 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $27,331,000 after purchasing an additional 42,712 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.81% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Murphy USA

In related news, Director Jeanne Linder Phillips sold 797 shares of Murphy USA stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the director now directly owns 2,349 shares in the company, valued at $1,062,476.19. The trade was a 25.33% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CMO Renee M. Bacon sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $469.58, for a total value of $939,160.00. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 5,927 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,783,200.66. The trade was a 25.23% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 10.12% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MUSA has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. 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 research report on Thursday, February 6th. Raymond James downgraded Murphy USA from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. KeyCorp dropped their price target on shares of Murphy USA from $550.00 to $525.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Melius started coverage on Murphy USA in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $600.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Stephens cut their price objective on shares of Murphy USA from $530.00 to $475.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Murphy USA presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $526.29.

Murphy USA Stock Performance

NYSE MUSA traded down $12.78 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $443.62. 62,992 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 209,722. Murphy USA Inc. has a 12-month low of $424.03 and a 12-month high of $561.08. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $474.68 and a 200 day moving average of $492.76. The company has a market cap of $8.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.30 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a quick ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The specialty retailer reported $2.63 earnings per share (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 business had revenue of $4.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.79 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.12 EPS. The company's revenue was down 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Murphy USA Inc. will post 26.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

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

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.