Redwood Investment Management LLC Sells 182 Shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA)

Redwood Investment Management LLC decreased its holdings in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) by 6.0% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 2,854 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 182 shares during the period. Redwood Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Murphy USA were worth $1,432,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. purchased a new position in Murphy USA in the fourth quarter worth about $50,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Murphy USA by 37.0% during the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 100 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Murphy USA during the 4th quarter valued at about $55,000. Johnson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Murphy USA during the 4th quarter valued at about $64,000. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Murphy USA during the 4th quarter valued at about $67,000. Institutional investors own 80.81% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com cut Murphy USA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Murphy USA from $550.00 to $554.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Stephens lowered their price target on Murphy USA from $530.00 to $475.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 9th. Melius Research raised Murphy USA to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Murphy USA from $555.00 to $550.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $526.29.

Insider Activity

In related news, 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 transaction of $939,160.00. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 5,927 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,783,200.66. This trade represents a 25.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Jeanne Linder Phillips sold 797 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $452.31, for a total value of $360,491.07. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 2,349 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,062,476.19. This trade represents a 25.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 9.04% of the company’s stock.

Murphy USA Trading Up 2.9%

Murphy USA stock opened at $452.12 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $474.63 and a two-hundred day moving average of $493.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a current ratio of 0.79. Murphy USA Inc. has a one year low of $424.03 and a one year high of $561.08. The stock has a market cap of $8.93 billion, a PE ratio of 18.68 and a beta of 0.59.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The specialty retailer reported $2.63 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.87 by ($1.24). The firm had revenue of $4.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.79 billion. Murphy USA had a net margin of 2.48% and a return on equity of 61.60%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.12 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Murphy USA Inc. will post 26.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 12th will be issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 12th. This is a positive change from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.44%. Murphy USA’s dividend payout ratio is currently 8.44%.

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.