8,092 Shares in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) Acquired by Edgestream Partners L.P.

Edgestream Partners L.P. bought a new stake in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 8,092 shares of the specialty retailer's stock, valued at approximately $4,060,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in shares of Murphy USA by 69.9% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 428,379 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $211,135,000 after buying an additional 176,308 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Murphy USA during the fourth quarter worth approximately $53,777,000. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Murphy USA by 6.0% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,751,206 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $863,116,000 after purchasing an additional 99,253 shares during the period. World Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Murphy USA in the 3rd quarter valued at $30,122,000. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. acquired a new position in Murphy USA in the 3rd quarter valued at $18,971,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.81% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Murphy USA news, CMO Renee M. Bacon sold 2,000 shares of Murphy USA stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $469.58, for a total value of $939,160.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 5,927 shares in the company, valued at $2,783,200.66. The trade was a 25.23 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Jeanne Linder Phillips sold 797 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $452.31, for a total transaction of $360,491.07. Following the transaction, the director now owns 2,349 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,062,476.19. The trade was a 25.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 3,594 shares of company stock valued at $1,695,043. Corporate insiders own 9.04% of the company's stock.

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Murphy USA Price Performance

MUSA traded down $16.27 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $452.19. 376,440 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 193,660. Murphy USA Inc. has a 1 year low of $382.04 and a 1 year high of $561.08. The company has a market capitalization of $9.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.69 and a beta of 0.80. The business's 50 day moving average price is $482.65 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $501.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.37.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The specialty retailer reported $6.96 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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, equities research 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 5th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th were given 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 0.43%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. Murphy USA's payout ratio is currently 8.10%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Melius Research raised shares of Murphy USA to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday. StockNews.com cut Murphy USA from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, February 15th. Melius initiated coverage on Murphy USA in a report on Tuesday. They issued a "buy" rating and a $600.00 price target for the company. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Murphy USA from $555.00 to $550.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on Murphy USA from $550.00 to $554.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $525.67.

Murphy USA Company Profile

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.