1,482 Shares in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) Acquired by Occudo Quantitative Strategies LP

Occudo Quantitative Strategies LP bought a new position in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 1,482 shares of the specialty retailer's stock, valued at approximately $744,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Barclays PLC grew its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 46.4% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 9,890 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $4,874,000 after buying an additional 3,135 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in Murphy USA by 69.9% in the third 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. Wedmont Private Capital grew its position in Murphy USA by 19.8% in the fourth quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 1,288 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $630,000 after acquiring an additional 213 shares in the last quarter. Oak Thistle LLC bought a new stake in Murphy USA during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,207,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. purchased a new stake in Murphy USA during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $11,529,000. 80.81% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Murphy USA

In related news, CMO Renee M. Bacon sold 2,000 shares of Murphy USA stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $469.58, for a total value of $939,160.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 5,927 shares in the company, valued at $2,783,200.66. The trade was a 25.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Jeanne Linder Phillips sold 797 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $452.31, for a total transaction of $360,491.07. Following the transaction, the director now owns 2,349 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,062,476.19. The trade was a 25.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 9.04% of the company's stock.

Murphy USA Trading Down 0.2%

Murphy USA stock traded down $1.08 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $457.52. The company's stock had a trading volume of 33,164 shares, compared to its average volume of 209,443. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a current ratio of 0.79. The company has a 50 day moving average of $474.51 and a 200-day moving average of $493.01. Murphy USA Inc. has a one year low of $424.03 and a one year high of $561.08. The stock has a market cap of $9.04 billion, a PE ratio of 18.91 and a beta of 0.59.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The specialty retailer reported $2.63 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $3.87 by ($1.24). The company had revenue of $4.53 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.79 billion. Murphy USA had a return on equity of 61.60% and a net margin of 2.48%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.12 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Murphy USA Inc. will post 26.45 EPS for the current year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 12th will be paid a $0.50 dividend. This is an increase from Murphy USA's previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.44%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 12th. Murphy USA's dividend payout ratio is currently 8.44%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on MUSA shares. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Murphy USA from $555.00 to $550.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 7th. Stephens dropped their price objective on shares of Murphy USA from $530.00 to $475.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Melius began coverage on shares of Murphy USA in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. They set a "buy" rating and a $600.00 price objective on the stock. StockNews.com lowered shares of Murphy USA from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Melius Research raised shares of Murphy USA to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $526.29.

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.