Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC Buys 59,044 Shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA)

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its holdings in shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA - Free Report) by 1,146.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 64,193 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 59,044 shares during the quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC owned approximately 0.30% of Murphy USA worth $22,889,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its stake in Murphy USA by 191.7% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 70 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Murphy USA in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its stake in Murphy USA by 34.2% in the third quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 153 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $52,000 after buying an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. C M Bidwell & Associates Ltd. lifted its stake in Murphy USA by 42.6% in the third quarter. C M Bidwell & Associates Ltd. now owns 174 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $59,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Covington Capital Management purchased a new stake in Murphy USA in the third quarter valued at approximately $61,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.81% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MUSA has been the subject of a number of research reports. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Murphy USA from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $375.00 to $425.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 4th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Murphy USA from $382.00 to $408.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Murphy USA from $395.00 to $440.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 9th. Finally, Stephens reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $470.00 price objective on shares of Murphy USA in a research note on Wednesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $404.60.

Insider Buying and Selling at Murphy USA

In other news, SVP Christopher A. Click sold 664 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $415.55, for a total value of $275,925.20. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 2,413 shares in the company, valued at $1,002,722.15. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Jeanne Linder Phillips sold 1,525 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $411.42, for a total transaction of $627,415.50. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,670 shares in the company, valued at $1,098,491.40. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Christopher A. Click sold 664 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $415.55, for a total value of $275,925.20. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 2,413 shares in the company, valued at $1,002,722.15. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 10,440 shares of company stock valued at $4,244,582. Insiders own 9.04% of the company's stock.

Murphy USA Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MUSA traded up $1.48 during trading on Friday, reaching $412.24. The company had a trading volume of 160,771 shares, compared to its average volume of 199,602. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $408.00 and its 200 day moving average price is $378.94. Murphy USA Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $265.49 and a fifty-two week high of $430.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.16 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.15, a current ratio of 0.95 and a quick ratio of 0.56.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 7th. The specialty retailer reported $7.00 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $5.79 by $1.21. The firm had revenue of $5.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.32 billion. Murphy USA had a return on equity of 70.92% and a net margin of 2.59%. Murphy USA's quarterly revenue was down 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $5.21 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Murphy USA Inc. will post 26.4 EPS for the current year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 26th were issued a $0.42 dividend. This is a positive change from Murphy USA's previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 23rd. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.41%. Murphy USA's dividend payout ratio is 6.59%.

Murphy USA 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.