Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD Sells 6,560 Shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA)

Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD reduced its holdings in shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA - Free Report) by 2.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 229,112 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 6,560 shares during the quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD owned 1.13% of Murphy USA worth $114,958,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of MUSA. Barclays PLC lifted its stake in Murphy USA by 46.4% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 9,890 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $4,874,000 after acquiring an additional 3,135 shares during the period. Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Murphy USA during the third quarter valued at approximately $1,136,000. World Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Murphy USA during the third quarter valued at approximately $30,122,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in Murphy USA during the third quarter valued at approximately $374,000. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC boosted its holdings in Murphy USA by 122.8% in the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 2,966 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $1,462,000 after purchasing an additional 1,635 shares during the last quarter. 80.81% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on MUSA shares. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Murphy USA from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday. Stephens upgraded Murphy USA to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Melius Research raised Murphy USA to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of 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, KeyCorp started coverage on shares of Murphy USA in a research note on Friday, April 11th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $550.00 price objective on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $539.00.

Insider Activity at Murphy USA

In other Murphy USA news, CMO Renee M. Bacon sold 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 $2,783,200.66. This represents a 25.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Rosemary Turner sold 797 shares of Murphy USA stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $496.10, for a total value of $395,391.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 3,594 shares of company stock valued at $1,695,043. Insiders own 9.04% of the company's stock.

Murphy USA Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE:MUSA opened at $490.72 on Monday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $470.84 and a 200 day moving average of $493.73. The company has a market cap of $9.71 billion, a PE ratio of 20.28 and a beta of 0.73. 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.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The specialty retailer reported $6.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.46 by $0.50. Murphy USA had a return on equity of 61.60% and a net margin of 2.48%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Murphy USA Inc. will post 26.45 EPS for the current year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 5th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 24th were issued a $0.49 dividend. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.40%. This is a boost from Murphy USA's previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. Murphy USA's payout ratio is 8.10%.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.