Los Angeles Capital Management LLC Raises Stake in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA)

Los Angeles Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA - Free Report) by 1,827.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 20,602 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after buying an additional 19,533 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC owned about 0.10% of Murphy USA worth $7,346,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in MUSA. SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Murphy USA in the 3rd quarter valued at $226,000. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Murphy USA by 5.3% in the third quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 1,561 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $533,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 4.6% in the third quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 4,704 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $1,608,000 after purchasing an additional 205 shares during the last quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Murphy USA in the third quarter worth about $846,000. Finally, Brown Advisory Inc. grew its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 1.0% in the third quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 122,355 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $41,813,000 after purchasing an additional 1,262 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.81% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Christopher A. Click sold 664 shares of Murphy USA stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $415.55, for a total transaction of $275,925.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 2,413 shares in the company, valued at $1,002,722.15. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, SVP Christopher A. Click sold 664 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $415.55, for a total value of $275,925.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 2,413 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,002,722.15. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Donald R. Smith, Jr. sold 1,235 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $407.96, for a total transaction of $503,830.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 21,564 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,797,249.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 10,440 shares of company stock worth $4,244,582. Insiders own 9.04% of the company's stock.

Murphy USA Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of MUSA stock traded down $3.92 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $392.44. 454,711 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 245,078. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $414.96 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $385.09. Murphy USA Inc. has a 12-month low of $268.69 and a 12-month high of $430.83. The stock has a market cap of $8.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.47 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a quick ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.28.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The specialty retailer reported $3.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.09 by ($0.97). Murphy USA had a net margin of 2.43% and a return on equity of 64.45%. The business had revenue of $4.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.89 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $4.80 earnings per share. Murphy USA's revenue for the quarter was down 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Murphy USA Inc. will post 26.29 EPS for the current year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 26th were issued a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.43%. 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. Murphy USA's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 7.05%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MUSA has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on Murphy USA from $382.00 to $408.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Stephens reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $470.00 target price on shares of Murphy USA in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Murphy USA from $440.00 to $460.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $408.60.

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.