Key Points
- Murphy USA SVP Eric Bartko sold 100 shares at an average price of $523.60, generating $52,360. After the transaction, his holdings fell 28.41% to 252 shares.
- The company reported quarterly EPS of $11.27, beating estimates of $9.95, while revenue rose 36% year over year to $6.81 billion. Murphy USA also increased its quarterly dividend to $0.65 per share.
- Analysts maintain a generally positive view, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $606.89, compared with the stock’s recent opening price of $521.41.
Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA - Get Free Report) SVP Eric Bartko sold 100 shares of Murphy USA stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $523.60, for a total value of $52,360.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 252 shares in the company, valued at approximately $131,947.20. This represents a 28.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link.
Murphy USA Price Performance
MUSA opened at $521.41 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.77, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.63 billion, a PE ratio of 15.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 0.25. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $571.65 and its 200-day moving average price is $528.28. Murphy USA Inc. has a 52-week low of $349.83 and a 52-week high of $636.04.
Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The specialty retailer reported $11.27 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $9.95 by $1.32. The company had revenue of $6.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.03 billion. Murphy USA had a return on equity of 96.01% and a net margin of 2.87%.The firm's revenue was up 36.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $7.36 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Murphy USA Inc. will post 34.7 EPS for the current year.
Murphy USA Increases Dividend
The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 24th were issued a $0.65 dividend. This is a boost from Murphy USA's previous quarterly dividend of $0.64. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 24th. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. Murphy USA's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 7.92%.
Institutional Trading of Murphy USA
Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. California State Teachers Retirement System increased its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 49,904.6% in the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 10,410,968 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $5,610,158,000 after acquiring an additional 10,390,148 shares in the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in Murphy USA during the second quarter worth about $915,734,000. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Murphy USA by 149.9% in the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 507,418 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $204,753,000 after purchasing an additional 304,354 shares during the period. River Road Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Murphy USA by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 506,214 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $204,267,000 after purchasing an additional 7,973 shares during the period. Finally, Morgan Stanley grew its holdings in Murphy USA by 45.6% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 318,473 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $128,511,000 after purchasing an additional 99,798 shares during the period. 80.81% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
Several brokerages recently issued reports on MUSA. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Murphy USA from $655.00 to $633.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Capital One Financial initiated coverage on Murphy USA in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. They set an "overweight" rating and a $710.00 price objective on the stock. KeyCorp upped their target price on Murphy USA from $600.00 to $680.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, June 12th. Zacks Research lowered Murphy USA from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. Finally, Bank of America raised their target price on Murphy USA from $600.00 to $625.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $606.89.
Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on MUSA
Murphy USA Company Profile
(
Get Free Report)
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.
Further Reading

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