Murphy USA Inc. $MUSA Stock Bought by VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al

VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al boosted its position in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) by 90.0% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 6,080 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,880 shares during the period. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al’s holdings in Murphy USA were worth $3,065,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Murphy USA in the second quarter valued at $915,734,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in Murphy USA in the second quarter valued at $78,372,000. Recurrent Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in Murphy USA by 23.2% during the first quarter. Recurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 146,119 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $71,986,000 after buying an additional 27,513 shares during the period. Engineers Gate Manager LP lifted its position in Murphy USA by 21,322.2% during the second quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 103,041 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $55,526,000 after buying an additional 102,560 shares during the period. Finally, Copeland Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Murphy USA during the third quarter worth about $54,143,000. 80.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Murphy USA Trading Down 3.9%

MUSA opened at $513.88 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.41, a P/E/G ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 0.29. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $523.77 and its 200-day moving average is $515.26. Murphy USA Inc. has a 52-week low of $352.42 and a 52-week high of $636.04. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.77.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The specialty retailer reported $9.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $8.37 by $1.22. Murphy USA had a return on equity of 96.37% and a net margin of 2.85%. The business had revenue of $6.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.25 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $7.25 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 34.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Murphy USA Inc. will post 34.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.72 per share. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. This is a boost from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 4th. Murphy USA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 8.07%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on the company. Wall Street Zen cut Murphy USA from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 19th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Murphy USA from $612.00 to $621.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Murphy USA from $600.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Murphy USA from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $380.00 to $550.00 in a report on Monday, July 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Murphy USA from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 21st. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $606.33.

Insider Buying and Selling at Murphy USA

In other news, Director Rosemary Turner sold 966 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 20th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at approximately $256,774.12. This trade represents a 68.27% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Eric Bartko sold 100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $523.60, for a total transaction of $52,360.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 252 shares in the company, valued at $131,947.20. This represents a 28.41% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 9.02% of the company’s stock.

Murphy USA Company Profile

Murphy USA Inc is a U.S. operator of retail fuel and convenience stores. The company sells gasoline and diesel fuel along with tobacco products, packaged beverages, snacks, candy, grocery items, general merchandise and other convenience products. Many locations also offer prepared food and related services.

The company operates stores under the Murphy USA and Murphy Express brands, with a network concentrated primarily in the Southern, Southeastern and Midwestern United States. Murphy USA locations are commonly situated near Walmart stores, while Murphy Express sites generally operate as standalone convenience stores.