Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) has received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the six ratings firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, one has issued a hold recommendation and four have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $469.50.

A number of research firms have recently commented on MUSA. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Murphy USA from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Raymond James lifted their price target on shares of Murphy USA from $530.00 to $545.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. StockNews.com raised shares of Murphy USA from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on Murphy USA from $538.00 to $537.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 1st.

Insider Activity at Murphy USA

In related news, Director Robert Madison Murphy sold 16,755 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $514.54, for a total value of $8,621,117.70. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 396,384 shares in the company, valued at approximately $203,955,423.36. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Murphy USA news, CEO R Andrew Clyde sold 10,392 shares of Murphy USA stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $440.32, for a total value of $4,575,805.44. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 199,563 shares in the company, valued at approximately $87,871,580.16. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Robert Madison Murphy sold 16,755 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $514.54, for a total transaction of $8,621,117.70. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 396,384 shares in the company, valued at approximately $203,955,423.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 41,455 shares of company stock worth $20,492,084 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 9.04% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Murphy USA

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. LSV Asset Management increased its position in shares of Murphy USA by 9.7% in the fourth quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 96,230 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $34,312,000 after buying an additional 8,500 shares in the last quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S increased its position in Murphy USA by 1,091.4% during the 1st quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 14,464 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $6,063,000 after purchasing an additional 13,250 shares during the period. Viking Fund Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Murphy USA during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $1,258,000. Sei Investments Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Murphy USA by 21.2% in the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 16,673 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $6,991,000 after purchasing an additional 2,911 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quadrature Capital Ltd purchased a new stake in Murphy USA in the 4th quarter worth approximately $8,949,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.81% of the company’s stock.

Murphy USA Price Performance

MUSA stock opened at $510.52 on Monday. Murphy USA has a 52 week low of $307.45 and a 52 week high of $521.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.20, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.84. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $480.57 and its 200 day moving average is $434.27. The firm has a market cap of $10.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.42 and a beta of 0.77.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The specialty retailer reported $6.92 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.91 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $5.45 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.69 billion. Murphy USA had a return on equity of 64.73% and a net margin of 2.50%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $6.02 EPS. Research analysts predict that Murphy USA will post 24.83 earnings per share for the current year.

About Murphy USA

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.