Argent Capital Management LLC Sells 3,780 Shares of Murphy USA Inc. $MUSA

Argent Capital Management LLC decreased its position in shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) by 3.0% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 120,234 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 3,780 shares during the quarter. Murphy USA accounts for about 1.9% of Argent Capital Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest holding. Argent Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Murphy USA were worth $59,392,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Murphy USA by 149.9% in the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 507,418 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $204,753,000 after purchasing an additional 304,354 shares in the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its position in shares of Murphy USA by 676.7% during the second quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 170,215 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $69,243,000 after purchasing an additional 148,301 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Murphy USA during the fourth quarter worth $50,726,000. Morgan Stanley grew its holdings in shares of Murphy USA by 45.6% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 318,473 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $128,511,000 after buying an additional 99,798 shares during the period. Finally, Encompass Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Murphy USA in the 1st quarter valued at $44,457,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.81% of the company’s stock.

Murphy USA Stock Down 1.2%

Murphy USA stock opened at $608.99 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $571.98 and a 200-day moving average of $505.47. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.24. Murphy USA Inc. has a twelve month low of $345.23 and a twelve month high of $636.04. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.25 billion, a PE ratio of 21.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 0.30.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The specialty retailer reported $7.28 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.37 by $1.91. The business had revenue of $4.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.70 billion. Murphy USA had a net margin of 2.81% and a return on equity of 91.05%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.63 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Murphy USA Inc. will post 32.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 18th were issued a dividend of $0.64 per share. This is a boost from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.63. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 18th. This represents a $2.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. Murphy USA’s dividend payout ratio is currently 8.85%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Diane N. Landen sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $547.25, for a total transaction of $1,641,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 53,841 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,464,487.25. This represents a 5.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Renee M. Bacon sold 1,050 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $529.44, for a total value of $555,912.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 3,083 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,632,263.52. This represents a 25.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 46,225 shares of company stock worth $27,363,392. 9.02% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on MUSA shares. Bank of America raised their price objective on Murphy USA from $600.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $619.00 target price on shares of Murphy USA in a research note on Wednesday. KeyCorp increased their price target on Murphy USA from $600.00 to $680.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, June 12th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Murphy USA from $520.00 to $570.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered Murphy USA from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $596.44.

About Murphy USA

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.