Analysts Set Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) PT at $539.00

Shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA - Get Free Report) have earned an average rating of "Buy" from the eight ratings firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $539.00.

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on MUSA shares. Melius Research raised Murphy USA to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. StockNews.com raised shares of Murphy USA from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Murphy USA from $550.00 to $554.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Stephens upgraded shares of Murphy USA to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 7th. Finally, Melius assumed 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.

Murphy USA Trading Down 1.5 %

NYSE MUSA traded down $7.90 during trading on Friday, hitting $512.37. The company had a trading volume of 243,063 shares, compared to its average volume of 205,181. The company's fifty day moving average is $468.17 and its 200-day moving average is $492.61. Murphy USA has a one year low of $382.04 and a one year high of $561.08. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18. The company has a market cap of $10.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.17 and a beta of 0.73.

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Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The specialty retailer reported $6.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Murphy USA will post 26.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 5th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th were issued a $0.49 dividend. This is a positive change from Murphy USA's previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. This represents a $1.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.38%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. Murphy USA's payout ratio is presently 8.10%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Murphy USA

In other news, CMO Renee M. Bacon sold 2,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 5,927 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,783,200.66. The trade was a 25.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Rosemary Turner sold 797 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $496.10, for a total transaction of $395,391.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 3,594 shares of company stock worth $1,695,043. Insiders own 9.04% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Murphy USA

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Captrust Financial Advisors bought a new stake in shares of Murphy USA in the third quarter worth $204,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC bought a new stake in shares of Murphy USA during the 3rd quarter valued at about $222,000. Quantinno Capital Management LP increased its position in shares of Murphy USA by 35.3% during the 3rd quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 863 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $425,000 after purchasing an additional 225 shares during the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp increased its position in shares of Murphy USA by 22.2% during the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 8,385 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $4,133,000 after purchasing an additional 1,526 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP purchased a new position in shares of Murphy USA in the third quarter worth approximately $3,836,000. 80.81% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.