Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Hold" by Brokerages

Shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA - Get Free Report) have received an average recommendation of "Hold" from the five analysts that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, one has issued a hold recommendation and three have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $408.60.

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on MUSA shares. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Murphy USA from $440.00 to $460.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 19th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Murphy USA from $382.00 to $408.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 8th. Stephens reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $470.00 price objective on shares of Murphy USA in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Murphy USA from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 9th.

Murphy USA Stock Performance

MUSA stock traded up $0.04 on Wednesday, reaching $441.05. The company's stock had a trading volume of 137,970 shares, compared to its average volume of 221,285. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $419.15 and a two-hundred day moving average of $391.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.28, a current ratio of 0.87 and a quick ratio of 0.54. The company has a market capitalization of $9.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.51 and a beta of 0.77. Murphy USA has a 52 week low of $268.69 and a 52 week high of $447.91.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The specialty retailer reported $3.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $4.09 by ($0.97). The firm had revenue of $4.84 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.89 billion. Murphy USA had a net margin of 2.43% and a return on equity of 64.45%. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $4.80 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Murphy USA will post 25.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 20th will be issued a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 17th. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.40%. This is a positive change from Murphy USA's previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. Murphy USA's dividend payout ratio is presently 7.39%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO R Andrew Clyde sold 10,392 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $440.32, for a total value of $4,575,805.44. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 199,563 shares in the company, valued at $87,871,580.16. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, Director Rosemary Turner sold 205 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $400.00, for a total value of $82,000.00. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO R Andrew Clyde sold 10,392 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $440.32, for a total transaction of $4,575,805.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 199,563 shares in the company, valued at $87,871,580.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 21,891 shares of company stock worth $9,277,080 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 9.73% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Murphy USA

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 24.3% in the first quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 1,617 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $678,000 after acquiring an additional 316 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 0.6% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 245,220 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $102,797,000 after acquiring an additional 1,519 shares during the last quarter. Hyperion Capital Advisors LP acquired a new position in shares of Murphy USA in the first quarter worth $243,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 451.9% in the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 12,887 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $5,401,000 after acquiring an additional 10,552 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EntryPoint Capital LLC acquired a new position in Murphy USA during the first quarter worth $69,000. 80.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.