Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) Shares Purchased by Bessemer Group Inc.

Bessemer Group Inc. grew its position in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) by 17.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 68,062 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 9,911 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc.’s holdings in Murphy USA were worth $34,150,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Murphy USA in the 4th quarter valued at about $50,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC increased its position in shares of Murphy USA by 37.0% during the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 100 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares during the period. Fortitude Family Office LLC boosted its holdings in Murphy USA by 186.1% during the fourth quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 103 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $52,000 after buying an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in Murphy USA in the 4th quarter worth about $55,000. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in Murphy USA during the 4th quarter worth approximately $67,000. 80.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Murphy USA from $550.00 to $554.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. StockNews.com lowered Murphy USA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Stephens upgraded Murphy USA to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Melius began coverage on Murphy USA in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $600.00 price target for the company. Finally, Melius Research upgraded shares of Murphy USA to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Murphy USA has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $525.67.

Insider Transactions at Murphy USA

In other news, Director Jeanne Linder Phillips sold 797 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $452.31, for a total value of $360,491.07. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 2,349 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,062,476.19. This represents a 25.33 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CMO Renee M. Bacon sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $469.58, for a total value of $939,160.00. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 5,927 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,783,200.66. The trade was a 25.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 3,594 shares of company stock valued at $1,695,043. Company insiders own 9.04% of the company’s stock.

Murphy USA Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MUSA opened at $476.65 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.44 billion, a PE ratio of 19.70 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a current ratio of 0.79. Murphy USA Inc. has a 52 week low of $382.04 and a 52 week high of $561.08. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $468.48 and a 200 day moving average price of $492.35.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The specialty retailer reported $6.96 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.46 by $0.50. Murphy USA had a net margin of 2.48% and a return on equity of 61.60%. Analysts predict that Murphy USA Inc. will post 26.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 5th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th were given a dividend of $0.49 per share. This is a boost from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.41%. Murphy USA’s dividend payout ratio is currently 8.10%.

Murphy USA Company 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.