Inspire Investing LLC Raises Stock Position in Murphy USA Inc. $MUSA

Inspire Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) by 16.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,488 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,056 shares during the period. Inspire Investing LLC’s holdings in Murphy USA were worth $3,699,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB grew its holdings in shares of Murphy USA by 82.4% in the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 62 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 28 shares during the period. Huntington National Bank raised its holdings in Murphy USA by 106.7% during the fourth quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 62 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Murphy USA during the third quarter worth $26,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in Murphy USA by 423.1% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 68 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Finally, V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new stake in Murphy USA in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.81% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Murphy USA

In related news, SVP Keith A. Emery sold 517 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $574.49, for a total transaction of $297,011.33. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $287,245. This represents a 50.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Scott G. Woodward sold 158 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $600.50, for a total value of $94,879.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 476 shares in the company, valued at approximately $285,838. The trade was a 24.92% 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 46,225 shares of company stock valued at $27,363,392. Corporate insiders own 9.02% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded Murphy USA from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday. Bank of America raised shares of Murphy USA from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $350.00 to $550.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on shares of Murphy USA from $510.00 to $517.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on shares of Murphy USA in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $539.00 target price for the company. Finally, Capital One Financial assumed coverage on shares of Murphy USA in a report on Monday, June 22nd. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $710.00 price target on the stock. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $539.50.

Murphy USA Price Performance

Murphy USA stock opened at $534.70 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.48, a P/E/G ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 0.30. Murphy USA Inc. has a 12-month low of $345.23 and a 12-month high of $636.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.24, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.48. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $550.24 and its two-hundred day moving average is $474.57.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The specialty retailer reported $7.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.37 by $1.91. The business had revenue of $4.82 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.70 billion. Murphy USA had a net margin of 2.81% and a return on equity of 91.05%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.63 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Murphy USA Inc. will post 32.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 18th were given a $0.64 dividend. This is an increase from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.63. This represents a $2.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 18th. Murphy USA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 8.85%.

Murphy USA 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.