KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Decreases Holdings in Murphy USA Inc. $MUSA

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS cut its holdings in shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) by 5.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 5,500 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 300 shares during the quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS’s holdings in Murphy USA were worth $2,237,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in Murphy USA by 94.0% in the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 371,667 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $174,613,000 after acquiring an additional 180,055 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its holdings in Murphy USA by 902.2% during the 1st quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 153,202 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $71,976,000 after buying an additional 137,915 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC grew its holdings in Murphy USA by 2,594.2% during the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 142,038 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $66,731,000 after buying an additional 136,766 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in Murphy USA by 61.5% during the 1st quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 252,575 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $118,662,000 after buying an additional 96,200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in Murphy USA during the 1st quarter valued at about $30,968,000. 80.81% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on MUSA shares. Zacks Research lowered Murphy USA from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, October 6th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Murphy USA in a report on Wednesday. KeyCorp reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $480.00 target price on shares of Murphy USA in a report on Friday, September 5th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered Murphy USA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $350.00 target price for the company. in a report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Murphy USA from $520.00 to $440.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $483.17.

Insider Transactions at Murphy USA

In related news, COO Malynda K. West sold 1,859 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $386.22, for a total value of $717,982.98. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 117,389 shares in the company, valued at $45,337,979.58. The trade was a 1.56% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Robert Madison Murphy bought 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 5th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $367.01 per share, with a total value of $1,835,050.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 389,172 shares in the company, valued at $142,830,015.72. The trade was a 1.30% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 9.04% of the company’s stock.

Murphy USA Stock Performance

Shares of MUSA opened at $377.78 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $7.29 billion, a PE ratio of 15.64 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.20. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $383.65 and a 200-day moving average price of $424.14. Murphy USA Inc. has a 12-month low of $345.23 and a 12-month high of $561.08.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The specialty retailer reported $7.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.82 by $0.54. The firm had revenue of $5.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.17 billion. Murphy USA had a return on equity of 64.63% and a net margin of 2.52%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $6.92 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Murphy USA Inc. will post 26.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 4th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 25th were given a dividend of $0.53 per share. This is a boost from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 25th. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Murphy USA’s dividend payout ratio is 8.78%.

Murphy USA Profile

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.