StockNews.com Upgrades Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) to “Buy”

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) was upgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday.

Murphy USA Stock Up 1.8 %

MUSA traded up $8.46 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $484.75. 236,360 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 172,147. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $519.32 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $506.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.19, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.41. Murphy USA has a fifty-two week low of $350.55 and a fifty-two week high of $561.08. The stock has a market cap of $9.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.00 and a beta of 0.80.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The specialty retailer reported $7.20 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.64 by $0.56. The firm had revenue of $5.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.54 billion. Murphy USA had a net margin of 2.48% and a return on equity of 62.73%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $7.69 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Murphy USA will post 23.51 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Murphy USA

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of MUSA. FMR LLC raised its holdings in Murphy USA by 6.0% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,751,206 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $863,116,000 after acquiring an additional 99,253 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 1.5% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 590,558 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $291,068,000 after purchasing an additional 8,507 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in Murphy USA by 69.9% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 428,379 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $211,135,000 after purchasing an additional 176,308 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Murphy USA by 49,501.3% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 388,874 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $191,664,000 after buying an additional 388,090 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Murphy USA by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 388,271 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $191,407,000 after buying an additional 16,006 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.