Robert Madison Murphy Sells 41,500 Shares of Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) Stock

Key Points

• Director Robert Madison Murphy sold 41,500 shares of Murphy USA at an average price of $596.96 on May 4, totaling about $24.77 million, reducing his stake by 10.82% to 342,212 shares (valued ~ $204.29 million).
• Murphy USA topped expectations in the latest quarter with EPS of $7.28 vs. $5.37 expected and revenue of $4.82 billion, while the stock trades near $575.87 with a market cap of $10.65 billion and a P/E of ~19.9.
• Analysts mostly rate the stock a "Moderate Buy" with a consensus target of $503.71 and several recent upgrades, institutional investors own ~80.8% of shares, and the company pays a quarterly dividend of $0.63 (≈0.4% yield).

Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA - Get Free Report) Director Robert Madison Murphy sold 41,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $596.96, for a total value of $24,773,840.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 342,212 shares of the company's stock, valued at $204,286,875.52. This trade represents a 10.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link.

Murphy USA Stock Performance

NYSE MUSA traded down $28.65 on Wednesday, reaching $575.87. The stock had a trading volume of 369,286 shares, compared to its average volume of 359,227. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.24, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a current ratio of 0.83. Murphy USA Inc. has a 12-month low of $345.23 and a 12-month high of $609.82. The business's 50-day moving average price is $476.81 and its 200 day moving average price is $425.14. The stock has a market cap of $10.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 0.36.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The specialty retailer reported $7.28 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.37 by $1.91. Murphy USA had a return on equity of 91.05% and a net margin of 2.81%.The business had revenue of $4.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.70 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.63 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Murphy USA Inc. will post 30.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Murphy USA Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 5th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 23rd were paid a dividend of $0.63 per share. This represents a $2.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 23rd. Murphy USA's dividend payout ratio is 8.71%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen raised Murphy USA from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on Murphy USA from $510.00 to $517.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Murphy USA from $450.00 to $520.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Bank of America raised Murphy USA from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and upped their target price for the company from $350.00 to $550.00 in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Finally, Zacks Research raised Murphy USA from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $503.71.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Murphy USA

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MUSA. Barclays PLC lifted its position in Murphy USA by 318.6% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 424,818 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $164,940,000 after buying an additional 323,331 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Murphy USA by 149.9% during the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 507,418 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $204,753,000 after buying an additional 304,354 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. lifted its position in Murphy USA by 676.7% during the second quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 170,215 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $69,243,000 after buying an additional 148,301 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Murphy USA in the 4th quarter worth about $50,726,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC raised its holdings in shares of Murphy USA by 1,723.1% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 132,450 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $53,446,000 after purchasing an additional 125,185 shares during the period. 80.81% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Murphy USA Company Profile

Murphy USA is a leading downstream marketer of gasoline, diesel and convenience store products in the United States. Headquartered in El Dorado, Arkansas, the company was originally established as part of Murphy Oil Corporation and was spun off as an independent public entity in 2013. Since its separation, Murphy USA has focused on retail fueling services and convenience offerings designed to deliver value and convenience to consumers.

The company's primary operations center on two retail formats.

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