Blue Trust Inc. Acquires 48 Shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA)

Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) by 6.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 852 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the quarter. Blue Trust Inc.’s holdings in Murphy USA were worth $400,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in MUSA. State of Alaska Department of Revenue grew its holdings in Murphy USA by 1.2% during the first quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 2,130 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,000,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. Mountain Pacific Investment Advisers LLC bought a new position in Murphy USA during the 1st quarter worth $6,103,000. Sowell Financial Services LLC bought a new position in Murphy USA during the 1st quarter worth $236,000. Ritholtz Wealth Management increased its position in Murphy USA by 10.6% during the 1st quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 1,076 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $506,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the period. Finally, Vista Finance LLC increased its position in Murphy USA by 7.1% during the 1st quarter. Vista Finance LLC now owns 621 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $292,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.81% of the company’s stock.

Murphy USA Price Performance

Shares of MUSA opened at $406.47 on Friday. Murphy USA Inc. has a 52-week low of $385.44 and a 52-week high of $561.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.74, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a current ratio of 0.80. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $455.58 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $475.48. The firm has a market cap of $8.03 billion, a PE ratio of 17.14 and a beta of 0.50.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The specialty retailer reported $2.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.87 by ($1.24). Murphy USA had a net margin of 2.46% and a return on equity of 61.19%. The business had revenue of $4.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.79 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.12 earnings per share. Murphy USA’s quarterly revenue was down 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Murphy USA Inc. will post 26.45 EPS for the current year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 12th were paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 12th. This is a positive change from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.49%. Murphy USA’s payout ratio is 8.44%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Murphy USA

In other news, Director David C. Haley bought 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $435.58 per share, with a total value of $435,580.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $435,580. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 9.04% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently commented on MUSA. Stephens dropped their price target on Murphy USA from $530.00 to $475.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Wall Street Zen cut Murphy USA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Melius Research upgraded Murphy USA to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Melius assumed coverage on Murphy USA in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. They set a “buy” rating and a $600.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Raymond James Financial cut Murphy USA from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $526.29.

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.