Norges Bank Takes $112.74 Million Position in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA)

Norges Bank bought a new position in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 224,696 shares of the specialty retailer's stock, valued at approximately $112,741,000. Norges Bank owned approximately 1.11% of Murphy USA at the end of the most recent reporting period.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Murphy USA news, Director Rosemary Turner sold 797 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on 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 document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CMO Renee M. Bacon sold 2,000 shares of the firm'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 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 3,594 shares of company stock worth $1,695,043 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 9.04% of the company's stock.

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Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Melius started coverage on shares of Murphy USA in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $600.00 price target for the company. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Murphy USA from $550.00 to $554.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Melius Research upgraded shares of Murphy USA to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. StockNews.com lowered Murphy USA from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Murphy USA from $555.00 to $550.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Murphy USA presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $525.67.

Murphy USA Stock Performance

Murphy USA stock traded down $11.60 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $470.95. 338,775 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 201,280. Murphy USA Inc. has a 12 month low of $382.04 and a 12 month 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 stock has a 50-day moving average of $471.35 and a 200 day moving average of $493.26. The firm has a market cap of $9.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.46 and a beta of 0.73.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The specialty retailer reported $6.96 earnings per share (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, 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 announced 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. This represents a $1.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.42%. This is a positive change from Murphy USA's previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. Murphy USA's payout ratio is 8.10%.

Murphy USA 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.