Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) Stock Moved Up to Strong-Buy by Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note published on Sunday,Wall Street Zen reports.

Several other research analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Capital One Financial initiated coverage on shares of Murphy USA in a report on Monday, June 22nd. They set an “overweight” rating and a $710.00 price objective on the stock. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Murphy USA from $600.00 to $625.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Murphy USA from $655.00 to $633.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Murphy USA from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $550.00 to $625.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised Murphy USA from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $380.00 to $550.00 in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Murphy USA presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $606.89.

Murphy USA Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of MUSA stock opened at $530.34 on Friday. Murphy USA has a 1 year low of $349.83 and a 1 year high of $636.04. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $532.60 and its 200 day simple moving average is $545.19. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 0.29. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.77.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The specialty retailer reported $11.27 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $9.95 by $1.32. Murphy USA had a net margin of 2.87% and a return on equity of 96.01%. The firm had revenue of $6.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.03 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $7.36 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 36.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Murphy USA will post 34.75 EPS for the current year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, August 24th were paid a $0.65 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 24th. This is a positive change from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.64. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Murphy USA’s dividend payout ratio is currently 7.92%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Murphy USA news, Director Rosemary Turner sold 966 shares of Murphy USA stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $571.88, for a total transaction of $552,436.08. Following the sale, the director owned 449 shares in the company, valued at $256,774.12. The trade was a 68.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Eric J. Bartko sold 100 shares of Murphy USA stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $523.60, for a total transaction of $52,360.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president 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. Corporate insiders own 9.02% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Murphy USA

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al bought a new stake in Murphy USA during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,724,000. Recurrent Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Murphy USA by 23.2% during the 1st quarter. Recurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 146,119 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $71,986,000 after purchasing an additional 27,513 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC acquired a new stake in Murphy USA during the 2nd quarter valued at $3,771,000. WINTON GROUP Ltd bought a new position in Murphy USA in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,358,000. Finally, Jupiter Topco LLC bought a new position in Murphy USA in the 2nd quarter valued at $4,062,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.81% of the company’s stock.

About Murphy USA

Murphy USA Inc operates a nationwide network of retail gasoline stations and convenience stores in the United States. Its stores sell branded and unbranded motor fuel, tobacco products, nicotine products, beverages, snacks, packaged food, and other convenience items. Some locations also offer additional services such as lottery products and car washes.

The company operates stores under the Murphy USA and Murphy Express brands, primarily in proximity to Walmart stores and along major roads.