Legal & General Group Plc Acquires Shares of 25,548 Murphy USA Inc. $MUSA

Legal & General Group Plc bought a new position in shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm bought 25,548 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $13,767,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MUSA. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new position in shares of Murphy USA during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $6,648,000. Algert Global LLC purchased a new stake in Murphy USA in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $4,715,000. Flavin Financial Services Inc. acquired a new position in Murphy USA in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,082,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Murphy USA in the second quarter valued at $390,000. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. acquired a new stake in Murphy USA in the 2nd quarter worth about $16,426,000. 80.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MUSA has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Murphy USA from $520.00 to $570.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Capital One Financial began coverage on Murphy USA in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $710.00 target price on the stock. Zacks Research cut Murphy USA from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, June 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Murphy USA from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $380.00 to $550.00 in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Finally, KeyCorp boosted their target price on Murphy USA from $600.00 to $680.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, June 12th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $606.89.

Key Murphy USA News

Here are the key news stories impacting Murphy USA this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks Research raised its FY2026 EPS estimate to $34.46 from $30.15, above the broader consensus of $33.84. Estimates also increased for Q3 2026 to $8.27 from $7.33, Q4 2026 to $7.65 from $7.24, and Q1 2027 to $3.99 from $3.63. These revisions suggest stronger near-term earnings expectations. Murphy USA analyst estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Longer-range estimates were also lifted: FY2027 EPS rose to $28.82 from $27.38, FY2028 EPS increased to $29.59 from $28.37, and Q3 2027 EPS jumped to $9.51 from $7.28. Higher forecasts could support the investment case if Murphy USA delivers the projected profitability. Murphy USA long-term earnings estimates
• Positive Sentiment: A Seeking Alpha analysis expects fuel margins to remain high during the second half of 2026, potentially benefiting Murphy USA’s fuel-led retail model and supporting the improved 2026 forecasts. Murphy USA: Expect High Fuel Margins For H2’26
• Neutral Sentiment: Despite the estimate increases, Zacks Research continues to rate MUSA “Hold,” indicating that analysts do not see enough evidence for a more bullish recommendation at present.
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks Research lowered its Q2 2027 EPS forecast to $8.73 from $9.53 and its Q4 2027 forecast to $6.59 from $6.94. These cuts highlight some expected volatility in future earnings and temper the otherwise favorable revisions.

Murphy USA Stock Performance

Murphy USA stock opened at $502.99 on Monday. Murphy USA Inc. has a 12-month low of $349.83 and a 12-month high of $636.04. The company has a market capitalization of $9.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 0.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.77, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.54. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $572.98 and its 200 day moving average price is $524.36.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The specialty retailer reported $11.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $9.95 by $1.32. Murphy USA had a net margin of 2.87% and a return on equity of 96.01%. The firm had revenue of $6.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.03 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $7.36 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 36.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Murphy USA Inc. will post 34.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, August 24th will be paid a dividend of $0.65 per share. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. This is a positive change from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.64. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 24th. Murphy USA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 7.92%.

Insider Activity

In other Murphy USA news, Director Rosemary Turner sold 966 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $571.88, for a total value of $552,436.08. Following the transaction, the director owned 449 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $256,774.12. This trade represents a 68.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Diane N. Landen sold 3,000 shares of Murphy USA stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $547.25, for a total value of $1,641,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 53,841 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,464,487.25. The trade was a 5.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 9.02% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Murphy USA Profile

Murphy USA is a leading downstream marketer of gasoline, diesel and convenience store products in the United States. Headquartered in El Dorado, Arkansas, the company was originally established as part of Murphy Oil Corporation and was spun off as an independent public entity in 2013. Since its separation, Murphy USA has focused on retail fueling services and convenience offerings designed to deliver value and convenience to consumers.

The company’s primary operations center on two retail formats.