Neuberger Berman Group LLC Acquires 176,036 Shares of Murphy USA Inc. $MUSA

Neuberger Berman Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) by 3,650.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 180,858 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 176,036 shares during the period. Neuberger Berman Group LLC owned approximately 0.94% of Murphy USA worth $73,573,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Murphy USA in the second quarter worth approximately $93,967,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in Murphy USA by 94.0% in the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 371,667 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $174,613,000 after buying an additional 180,055 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its stake in Murphy USA by 902.2% during the 1st quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 153,202 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $71,976,000 after acquiring an additional 137,915 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC boosted its holdings in Murphy USA by 2,594.2% during the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 142,038 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $66,731,000 after acquiring an additional 136,766 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can grew its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 2,283.8% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 69,797 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $28,393,000 after acquiring an additional 66,869 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.81% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on MUSA. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Murphy USA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $350.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Friday, August 1st. Zacks Research raised shares of Murphy USA from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 4th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Murphy USA in a research note on Wednesday, November 19th. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on Murphy USA in a research report on Wednesday, October 15th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $405.00 price target for the company. Finally, KeyCorp cut their price objective on Murphy USA from $480.00 to $460.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $474.00.

Murphy USA Price Performance

Murphy USA stock opened at $385.13 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.24 and a beta of 0.39. Murphy USA Inc. has a one year low of $345.23 and a one year high of $561.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.07, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.40. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $377.03 and a 200-day moving average price of $397.03.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 29th. The specialty retailer reported $7.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.60 by $0.65. The business had revenue of $5.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.11 billion. Murphy USA had a return on equity of 69.87% and a net margin of 2.43%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $7.20 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Murphy USA Inc. will post 26.45 EPS for the current year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 10th will be issued a $0.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 10th. This is an increase from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.53. This represents a $2.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Murphy USA’s payout ratio is currently 10.63%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO R Andrew Clyde sold 16,250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $381.33, for a total transaction of $6,196,612.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 59,172 shares in the company, valued at $22,564,058.76. The trade was a 21.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 9.04% of the company’s stock.

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.