Enhancing Capital LLC Purchases New Stake in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA)

Enhancing Capital LLC bought a new stake in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor bought 1,042 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $523,000.

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

Murphy USA Stock Down 2.3 %

Shares of NYSE MUSA opened at $440.63 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $8.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.21 and a beta of 0.80. 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 1 year low of $382.04 and a 1 year high of $561.08. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $478.57 and its 200 day moving average price is $499.33.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The specialty retailer reported $6.96 earnings per share (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%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Murphy USA Inc. will post 26.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 5th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th were issued a dividend of $0.49 per share. This is an increase from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.44%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. Murphy USA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 8.10%.

Insider Activity

In other Murphy USA news, CMO Renee M. Bacon sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $469.58, for a total transaction of $939,160.00. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 5,927 shares in the company, valued at $2,783,200.66. This represents a 25.23 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Rosemary Turner sold 797 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $496.10, for a total value of $395,391.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 3,594 shares of company stock worth $1,695,043 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 9.04% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on MUSA shares. Melius Research upgraded Murphy USA to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective 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. Melius began coverage on shares of Murphy USA in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. They set a “buy” rating and a $600.00 target price for the company. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Murphy USA from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Murphy USA from $555.00 to $550.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $525.67.

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.