Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) Price Target Increased to $545.00 by Analysts at Raymond James

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) had its price target hoisted by Raymond James from $530.00 to $545.00 in a research note released on Friday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an outperform rating on the specialty retailer’s stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on MUSA. StockNews.com cut shares of Murphy USA from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Murphy USA from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Friday. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on shares of Murphy USA from $538.00 to $537.00 and set a sector perform rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Stephens reiterated an overweight rating and set a $470.00 price objective on shares of Murphy USA in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $469.50.

Murphy USA Trading Up 1.0 %

MUSA stock traded up $5.05 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $513.68. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 81,039 shares, compared to its average volume of 213,126. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.20, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.84. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $473.54 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $430.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.29 and a beta of 0.77. Murphy USA has a 1 year low of $297.36 and a 1 year high of $521.54.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The specialty retailer reported $6.92 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.91 by $0.01. Murphy USA had a net margin of 2.50% and a return on equity of 64.73%. The firm had revenue of $5.45 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.69 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $6.02 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Murphy USA will post 24.83 EPS for the current year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 20th were given a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.34%. This is a boost from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 17th. Murphy USA’s dividend payout ratio is 7.39%.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Donald R. Smith, Jr. sold 854 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $438.75, for a total value of $374,692.50. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 20,099 shares in the company, valued at $8,818,436.25. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In related news, CEO R Andrew Clyde sold 10,392 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $440.32, for a total value of $4,575,805.44. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 199,563 shares in the company, valued at approximately $87,871,580.16. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, VP Donald R. Smith, Jr. sold 854 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $438.75, for a total transaction 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. Company insiders own 9.04% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MUSA. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Murphy USA by 33.1% in the fourth quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 6,261 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $2,232,000 after acquiring an additional 1,557 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its holdings in Murphy USA by 191.7% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 70 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in Murphy USA by 35,556.0% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 269,916 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $96,241,000 after buying an additional 269,159 shares during the period. Narus Financial Partners LLC increased its holdings in Murphy USA by 44.6% in the fourth quarter. Narus Financial Partners LLC now owns 960 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $342,000 after buying an additional 296 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its position in shares of Murphy USA by 1,146.7% during the 4th quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 64,193 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $22,889,000 after acquiring an additional 59,044 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.