Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) Upgraded by Melius Research to “Strong-Buy” Rating

Melius Research upgraded shares of Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) to a strong-buy rating in a research note released on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

Other equities analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Murphy USA from $555.00 to $550.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 7th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Murphy USA from $550.00 to $554.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Murphy USA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, February 15th. Finally, Melius started coverage on Murphy USA in a report on Tuesday. They set a “buy” rating and a $600.00 target price on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Murphy USA has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $525.67.

Murphy USA Stock Up 0.7 %

MUSA opened at $469.68 on Tuesday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $483.29 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $501.48. The company has a quick ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18. Murphy USA has a twelve month low of $382.04 and a twelve month high of $561.08. The stock has a market cap of $9.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.41 and a beta of 0.80.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The specialty retailer reported $6.96 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Murphy USA will post 26.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 5th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 24th were issued a $0.49 dividend. This is a positive change from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. This represents a $1.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.42%. Murphy USA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 8.10%.

Insider Transactions at Murphy USA

In related news, CMO Renee M. Bacon sold 2,000 shares of Murphy USA stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $469.58, for a total transaction 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. This trade represents a 25.23 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Jeanne Linder Phillips sold 797 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $452.31, for a total transaction of $360,491.07. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,349 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,062,476.19. The trade was a 25.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 3,594 shares of company stock worth $1,695,043 over the last three months. 9.04% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Murphy USA

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MUSA. Stifel Financial Corp boosted its stake in Murphy USA by 22.2% during the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 8,385 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $4,133,000 after buying an additional 1,526 shares during the period. Oak Thistle LLC acquired a new stake in Murphy USA in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,207,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. acquired a new stake in Murphy USA in the fourth quarter worth about $11,529,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in Murphy USA by 69.9% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 428,379 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $211,135,000 after purchasing an additional 176,308 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC increased its position in shares of Murphy USA by 622.9% in the 3rd quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 4,048 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,995,000 after acquiring an additional 3,488 shares during the period. 80.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.