Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) Shares Sold by Alliancebernstein L.P.

Alliancebernstein L.P. lessened its holdings in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA - Free Report) by 18.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 39,406 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 8,697 shares during the quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. owned approximately 0.19% of Murphy USA worth $19,772,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. acquired a new stake in Murphy USA during the fourth quarter worth approximately $50,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC raised its stake in Murphy USA by 37.0% during the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 100 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $50,000 after acquiring an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC lifted its position in Murphy USA by 186.1% in the fourth quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 103 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $52,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in Murphy USA in the fourth quarter valued at $55,000. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Murphy USA in the fourth quarter valued at $67,000. 80.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Royal Bank of Canada boosted 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. Melius started coverage on Murphy USA in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $600.00 price objective for the company. KeyCorp assumed coverage on shares of Murphy USA in a research report on Friday. They set an "overweight" rating and a $550.00 target price on the stock. Stephens upgraded shares of Murphy USA to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Finally, Melius Research raised shares of Murphy USA to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Murphy USA presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $539.00.

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Murphy USA Stock Performance

MUSA traded up $32.36 during trading on Friday, hitting $514.54. The stock had a trading volume of 577,174 shares, compared to its average volume of 204,250. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.26 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a current ratio of 0.79. Murphy USA Inc. has a twelve month low of $382.04 and a twelve month high of $561.08. The company's 50-day moving average price is $468.08 and its 200 day moving average price is $492.49.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA - Get Free Report) last issued 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, equities research analysts forecast that Murphy USA Inc. will post 26.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 5th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 24th were paid a dividend of $0.49 per share. This represents a $1.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.38%. This is an increase from Murphy USA's previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. Murphy USA's dividend payout ratio is 8.10%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Rosemary Turner sold 797 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $496.10, for a total value of $395,391.70. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CMO Renee M. Bacon sold 2,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $469.58, for a total transaction of $939,160.00. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 5,927 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,783,200.66. This represents a 25.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 3,594 shares of company stock valued at $1,695,043 in the last three months. 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.