VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al Purchases New Position in Murphy USA Inc. $MUSA

VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al purchased a new position in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 3,200 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $1,724,000.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. WINTON GROUP Ltd purchased a new stake in Murphy USA during the 4th quarter valued at $6,874,000. Recurrent Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Murphy USA by 23.2% during the first quarter. Recurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 146,119 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $71,986,000 after buying an additional 27,513 shares during the period. Evergreen Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in Murphy USA during the fourth quarter worth $1,333,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its position in Murphy USA by 21,756.4% during the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 41,090 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $16,581,000 after acquiring an additional 40,902 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Murphy USA during the fourth quarter valued at $1,029,000. 80.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Murphy USA Stock Performance

MUSA stock opened at $523.09 on Friday. Murphy USA Inc. has a twelve month low of $349.83 and a twelve month high of $636.04. The firm has a market cap of $9.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.93, a PEG ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 0.25. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $568.13 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $532.52. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.77.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The specialty retailer reported $11.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.95 by $1.32. The firm had revenue of $6.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.03 billion. Murphy USA had a net margin of 2.87% and a return on equity of 96.01%. The business’s revenue was up 36.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $7.36 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Murphy USA Inc. will post 34.7 earnings per share 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 given a $0.65 dividend. This is a positive change from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.64. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 24th. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. Murphy USA’s dividend payout ratio is presently 7.92%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MUSA has been the subject of several analyst reports. KeyCorp raised their target price on shares of Murphy USA from $600.00 to $680.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, June 12th. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Murphy USA from $600.00 to $625.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, July 10th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Murphy USA from $520.00 to $570.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Murphy USA from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $380.00 to $550.00 in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Murphy USA from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $550.00 to $625.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Murphy USA currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $606.89.

Insider Activity

In other Murphy USA news, Director Rosemary Turner sold 966 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $571.88, for a total value of $552,436.08. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 449 shares in the company, valued at $256,774.12. This represents a 68.27% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Eric Bartko sold 100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $523.60, for a total transaction of $52,360.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 252 shares in the company, valued at approximately $131,947.20. This trade represents a 28.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 9.02% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Murphy USA

Murphy USA Inc (NYSE:MUSA) operates a network of retail fuel stations and convenience stores in the United States. Its locations primarily serve motorists and local communities, offering gasoline and diesel fuel along with convenience merchandise.

The company’s stores sell products such as tobacco, nicotine products, beverages, snacks, packaged food, and other general merchandise. Many locations also provide prepared food and other convenience services, with product offerings designed to complement the company’s fuel business.

Murphy USA was established as an independent publicly traded company in 2013 following its separation from Murphy Oil Corporation.