Wells Fargo & Company Issues Positive Forecast for Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) Stock Price

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) had its price objective boosted by Wells Fargo & Company from $450.00 to $520.00 in a research report released on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an equal weight rating on the specialty retailer’s stock.

Other analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Stephens reduced their target price on shares of Murphy USA from $475.00 to $450.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 6th. KeyCorp boosted their price objective on shares of Murphy USA from $560.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Murphy USA from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, March 28th. Bank of America upgraded shares of Murphy USA from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $350.00 to $550.00 in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Murphy USA from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $503.71.

Murphy USA Stock Up 1.3%

Shares of MUSA traded up $7.84 on Friday, reaching $595.84. The stock had a trading volume of 407,683 shares, compared to its average volume of 356,704. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.24, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.83. Murphy USA has a 12-month low of $345.23 and a 12-month high of $597.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 0.36. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $472.53 and a 200-day simple moving average of $422.92.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The specialty retailer reported $7.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.37 by $1.91. The business had revenue of $4.82 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.70 billion. Murphy USA had a return on equity of 91.05% and a net margin of 2.81%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.63 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Murphy USA will post 29.66 EPS for the current year.

Murphy USA Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 5th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 23rd were paid a dividend of $0.63 per share. This represents a $2.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 23rd. Murphy USA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 8.71%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Eric J. Bartko sold 345 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $404.84, for a total transaction of $139,669.80. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 352 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $142,503.68. This trade represents a 49.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Renee M. Bacon sold 2,844 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $388.61, for a total transaction of $1,105,206.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 3,083 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,198,084.63. The trade was a 47.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders sold 10,919 shares of company stock valued at $4,490,690. 9.02% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Murphy USA

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its holdings in shares of Murphy USA by 82.4% during the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 62 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares in the last quarter. Huntington National Bank increased its holdings in Murphy USA by 106.7% in the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 62 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. purchased a new position in Murphy USA in the 3rd quarter worth about $26,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in Murphy USA by 423.1% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 68 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AlphaQuest LLC lifted its stake in Murphy USA by 317.6% during the 3rd quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 71 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.81% of the company’s stock.

Key Murphy USA News

Here are the key news stories impacting Murphy USA this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 results materially beat expectations — EPS of $7.28 vs. consensus ~$5.37, fuel contribution and merchandise margins both improved, and the company continued buybacks and a dividend; these operational beats are the primary driver of the rally. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrades and model raises: Zacks moved MUSA to a stronger recommendation and several shops (KeyCorp, Zacks team) have nudged EPS and longer-term estimates higher, supporting a higher valuation case. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Momentum / market interest: coverage pieces note MUSA at a 52‑week high and classify it as a strong momentum/growth stock — that can attract momentum and quant flows. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst opinions and price targets are mixed — KeyCorp and some shops have $600+ targets while the median across recent reports is below the current price, producing both upside and tail‑risk narratives for different investors. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Wells Fargo set an “equal weight” stance and raised its target to $520 — still below the current market level — which could cap further upside from some institutional holders. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling has been heavy in recent months (multiple senior exec sales), which some investors view as a governance or near-term sentiment risk. Read More.

Murphy USA Company Profile

Murphy USA is a leading downstream marketer of gasoline, diesel and convenience store products in the United States. Headquartered in El Dorado, Arkansas, the company was originally established as part of Murphy Oil Corporation and was spun off as an independent public entity in 2013. Since its separation, Murphy USA has focused on retail fueling services and convenience offerings designed to deliver value and convenience to consumers.

The company’s primary operations center on two retail formats.