Key Financial Inc Buys 132 Shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA)

Key Financial Inc raised its stake in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) by 942.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 146 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 132 shares during the quarter. Key Financial Inc’s holdings in Murphy USA were worth $52,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 191.7% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 70 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares during the period. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Murphy USA during the 4th quarter worth approximately $44,000. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its holdings in Murphy USA by 34.2% during the 3rd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 153 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $52,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. C M Bidwell & Associates Ltd. lifted its holdings in Murphy USA by 42.6% during the 3rd quarter. C M Bidwell & Associates Ltd. now owns 174 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $59,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Covington Capital Management acquired a new stake in Murphy USA during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $61,000. 80.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Christopher A. Click sold 664 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $415.55, for a total transaction of $275,925.20. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 2,413 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,002,722.15. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Murphy USA news, SVP Christopher A. Click sold 664 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $415.55, for a total value of $275,925.20. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 2,413 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,002,722.15. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, VP Donald R. Smith, Jr. sold 1,235 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $407.96, for a total value of $503,830.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 21,564 shares in the company, valued at $8,797,249.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 10,440 shares of company stock worth $4,244,582 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 9.04% of the company’s stock.

Murphy USA Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MUSA opened at $421.11 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.76 billion, a PE ratio of 16.51 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.15, a current ratio of 0.95 and a quick ratio of 0.56. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $411.29 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $380.26. Murphy USA Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $265.49 and a fifty-two week high of $430.83.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 7th. The specialty retailer reported $7.00 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.79 by $1.21. Murphy USA had a return on equity of 70.92% and a net margin of 2.59%. The company had revenue of $5.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.32 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $5.21 EPS. Murphy USA’s revenue was down 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Murphy USA Inc. will post 26.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 7th. Investors of record on Monday, February 26th were given a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 23rd. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.40%. This is a positive change from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. Murphy USA’s payout ratio is currently 6.59%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MUSA has been the subject of several research reports. Jefferies Financial Group raised Murphy USA from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $375.00 to $425.00 in a report on Thursday, January 4th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Murphy USA from $395.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 9th. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $470.00 price target on shares of Murphy USA in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on Murphy USA from $382.00 to $408.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $404.60.

Murphy USA Company 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.