Russell Investments Group Ltd. Purchases 8,001 Shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA)

Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its position in shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA - Free Report) by 122.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 14,560 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after acquiring an additional 8,001 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned approximately 0.07% of Murphy USA worth $7,306,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 116,444 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $58,426,000 after purchasing an additional 3,944 shares during the period. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Murphy USA in the fourth quarter worth $1,780,000. Islay Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Murphy USA during the fourth quarter worth about $731,000. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Murphy USA by 7.2% in the 4th quarter. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 956 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $479,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Murphy USA by 8.6% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 421,760 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $211,667,000 after acquiring an additional 33,489 shares during the period. 80.81% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Murphy USA Price Performance

NYSE:MUSA traded up $4.57 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $511.03. The company's stock had a trading volume of 134,910 shares, compared to its average volume of 204,545. Murphy USA Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $382.04 and a fifty-two week high of $561.08. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $469.44 and a 200-day moving average of $492.98. The company has a market capitalization of $10.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.12 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The specialty retailer reported $6.96 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $6.46 by $0.50. Murphy USA had a return on equity of 61.60% and a net margin of 2.48%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Murphy USA Inc. will post 26.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 5th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th were paid a dividend of $0.49 per share. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.38%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. This is an increase from Murphy USA's previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. Murphy USA's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 8.10%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on MUSA. Melius assumed coverage on shares of Murphy USA in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $600.00 target price for the company. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Murphy USA from $555.00 to $550.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 7th. Stephens raised shares of Murphy USA to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 7th. StockNews.com cut shares of Murphy USA from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Murphy USA from $550.00 to $554.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Murphy USA presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $539.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CMO Renee M. Bacon sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $469.58, for a total transaction of $939,160.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 5,927 shares in the company, valued at $2,783,200.66. This represents a 25.23 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Rosemary Turner sold 797 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $496.10, for a total value of $395,391.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 3,594 shares of company stock worth $1,695,043. Corporate insiders own 9.04% of the company's stock.

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.