Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) Stock Has Average Target Price of $606.89

Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) has been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the eleven ratings firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $606.89.

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on MUSA shares. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Murphy USA from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Tuesday. Zacks Research lowered Murphy USA from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. Bank of America increased their price objective on Murphy USA from $600.00 to $625.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Murphy USA from $655.00 to $633.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised Murphy USA from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $550.00 to $625.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st.

Murphy USA Stock Performance

NYSE MUSA opened at $510.16 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.77, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.54. The company has a market cap of $9.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.53, a P/E/G ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 0.25. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $552.48 and a two-hundred day moving average of $540.50. Murphy USA has a 1-year low of $349.83 and a 1-year high of $636.04.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The specialty retailer reported $11.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $9.95 by $1.32. Murphy USA had a net margin of 2.87% and a return on equity of 96.01%. The business had revenue of $6.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.03 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $7.36 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 36.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Murphy USA will post 34.7 EPS for the current year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 24th were given a $0.65 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 24th. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. This is an increase from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.64. Murphy USA’s dividend payout ratio is 7.92%.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Eric Bartko sold 100 shares of Murphy USA stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the senior vice president owned 252 shares in the company, valued at approximately $131,947.20. This trade represents a 28.41% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Rosemary Turner sold 966 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 20th. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $256,774.12. This represents a 68.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 9.02% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. WINTON GROUP Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Murphy USA during the fourth quarter worth $6,874,000. Recurrent Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Murphy USA by 23.2% in the first quarter. Recurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 146,119 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $71,986,000 after buying an additional 27,513 shares during the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC acquired a new stake in Murphy USA in the second quarter valued at $3,771,000. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al acquired a new stake in Murphy USA in the second quarter valued at $1,724,000. Finally, Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky lifted its holdings in Murphy USA by 130.9% during the 1st quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 12,506 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $6,177,000 after buying an additional 7,090 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.81% of the company’s stock.

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.