CWA Asset Management Group LLC Invests $1.57 Million in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA)

CWA Asset Management Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA - Free Report) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 3,192 shares of the specialty retailer's stock, valued at approximately $1,573,000.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of MUSA. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Murphy USA by 49,501.3% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 388,874 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $191,664,000 after purchasing an additional 388,090 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its position in shares of Murphy USA by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 245,220 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $102,797,000 after acquiring an additional 1,519 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in shares of Murphy USA by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 204,363 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $95,940,000 after acquiring an additional 1,560 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Murphy USA by 1.2% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 141,637 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $66,493,000 after acquiring an additional 1,635 shares in the last quarter. Finally, William Blair Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Murphy USA by 1.2% in the first quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 127,160 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $53,305,000 after purchasing an additional 1,509 shares during the period. 80.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on MUSA. StockNews.com cut shares of Murphy USA from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, October 26th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Murphy USA from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Raymond James upped their target price on Murphy USA from $530.00 to $545.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded shares of Murphy USA from a "neutral" rating to an "underweight" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $415.00 to $435.00 in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on shares of Murphy USA from $538.00 to $537.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Murphy USA presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $495.33.

Murphy USA Stock Up 2.0 %

NYSE:MUSA traded up $9.95 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $518.24. 162,320 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 152,396. The company has a quick ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.19. The company has a market cap of $10.49 billion, a PE ratio of 21.38 and a beta of 0.75. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $495.54 and its 200-day simple moving average is $478.97. Murphy USA Inc. has a one year low of $350.55 and a one year high of $552.30.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The specialty retailer reported $7.20 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.64 by $0.56. The business had revenue of $5.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.54 billion. Murphy USA had a net margin of 2.48% and a return on equity of 62.73%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $7.69 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Murphy USA Inc. will post 23.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 4th will be issued a $0.48 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 4th. This is a positive change from Murphy USA's previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.37%. Murphy USA's dividend payout ratio is currently 7.92%.

Insider Activity at Murphy USA

In other Murphy USA news, Director James W. Keyes sold 2,000 shares of Murphy USA stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $511.54, for a total value of $1,023,080.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 16,114 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,242,955.56. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 9.04% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.