Teacher Retirement System of Texas Increases Position in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA)

Teacher Retirement System of Texas increased its position in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA - Free Report) by 17.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,559 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 979 shares during the quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas' holdings in Murphy USA were worth $3,291,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of MUSA. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. bought a new position in shares of Murphy USA during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $50,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC lifted its holdings 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 worth $50,000 after buying an additional 27 shares during the period. Fortitude Family Office LLC boosted its position in Murphy USA by 186.1% during the 4th 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 in the last quarter. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Murphy USA in the 4th quarter valued at $55,000. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Murphy USA in the 4th quarter valued at $67,000. 80.81% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Murphy USA Stock Performance

Murphy USA stock traded down $1.38 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $459.90. 216,958 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 200,219. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.37. The firm's fifty day moving average is $471.75 and its two-hundred day moving average is $495.34. Murphy USA Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $382.04 and a fifty-two week high of $561.08. The company has a market capitalization of $9.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.00 and a beta of 0.80.

Remove Ads

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The specialty retailer reported $6.96 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Murphy USA Inc. will post 26.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 5th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th were issued a $0.49 dividend. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.43%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. This is an increase from Murphy USA's previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. Murphy USA's dividend payout ratio is 8.10%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on MUSA shares. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Murphy USA from $555.00 to $550.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of 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 shares of Murphy USA in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. They set a "buy" rating and a $600.00 price objective for the company. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Murphy USA from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Finally, Melius Research raised Murphy USA to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $525.67.

Insider Buying and Selling at Murphy USA

In other news, Director Rosemary Turner sold 797 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $496.10, for a total value of $395,391.70. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at 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 value 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 trade represents a 25.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 3,594 shares of company stock worth $1,695,043. Company insiders own 9.04% of the company's stock.

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.