Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) Upgraded at StockNews.com

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) was upgraded by StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued on Wednesday.

Several other brokerages also recently issued reports on MUSA. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $470.00 price target on shares of Murphy USA in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Raymond James raised their price target on shares of Murphy USA from $425.00 to $530.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Murphy USA from $440.00 to $460.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $428.83.

Murphy USA Price Performance

MUSA opened at $501.66 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.28. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $464.46 and its 200 day moving average price is $423.52. Murphy USA has a fifty-two week low of $282.49 and a fifty-two week high of $520.00. The firm has a market cap of $10.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.05 and a beta of 0.77.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The specialty retailer reported $3.12 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.09 by ($0.97). Murphy USA had a return on equity of 64.45% and a net margin of 2.43%. The company had revenue of $4.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.89 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $4.80 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Murphy USA will post 24.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Rosemary Turner sold 205 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $400.00, for a total transaction of $82,000.00. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, Director Rosemary Turner sold 205 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $400.00, for a total transaction of $82,000.00. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Donald R. Smith, Jr. sold 854 shares of Murphy USA stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $438.75, for a total value of $374,692.50. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 20,099 shares in the company, valued at $8,818,436.25. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 11,451 shares of company stock worth $5,032,498 in the last quarter. 9.04% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Murphy USA

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Quadrant Capital Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 19.0% in the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 188 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $67,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. SYSTM Wealth Solutions LLC raised its position in Murphy USA by 3.8% in the 1st quarter. SYSTM Wealth Solutions LLC now owns 844 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $354,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 5.1% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 643 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $270,000 after buying an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in Murphy USA by 7.3% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 499 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $170,000 after buying an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Resonant Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in Murphy USA by 4.4% in the 1st quarter. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC now owns 860 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $361,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.81% of the company’s stock.

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.