Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA – Get Rating) was upgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday.
A number of other research analysts have also weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Murphy USA from $325.00 to $330.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 4th. Raymond James dropped their price objective on shares of Murphy USA from $335.00 to $305.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Murphy USA currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $315.60.
Murphy USA Stock Performance
Murphy USA stock opened at $277.56 on Friday. Murphy USA has a fifty-two week low of $217.39 and a fifty-two week high of $323.00. The company has a market capitalization of $6.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.35 and a beta of 0.80. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $262.94 and a two-hundred day moving average of $274.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.50, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 0.92.
Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA – Get Rating) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 2nd. The specialty retailer reported $4.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.18 by $0.62. Murphy USA had a net margin of 2.68% and a return on equity of 86.87%. The company had revenue of $5.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.95 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $6.08 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Murphy USA will post 18.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Insider Activity
In other news, Director Jeanne Linder Phillips sold 550 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $283.97, for a total value of $156,183.50. Following the transaction, the director now owns 2,874 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $816,129.78. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 9.47% of the company’s stock.
Institutional Inflows and Outflows
Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in MUSA. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Murphy USA by 635.5% in the 1st quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 276,141 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $13,592,000 after purchasing an additional 238,594 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Murphy USA during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $51,918,000. Morgan Stanley raised its stake in Murphy USA by 76.4% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 379,886 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $106,194,000 after buying an additional 164,519 shares in the last quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Murphy USA by 49.1% during the first quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 441,007 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $113,802,000 after buying an additional 145,265 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Murphy USA by 134.7% during the first quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 239,971 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $61,925,000 after purchasing an additional 137,709 shares during the last quarter. 85.30% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Murphy USA Company Profile
Murphy USA, Inc engages in marketing motor fuel products and convenience merchandise through retail stores, namely Murphy USA and Murphy Express. It collaborates with Walmart to offer customers discounted and free items based on purchases of qualifying fuel and merchandise. The company was founded in 1996 and is headquartered in El Dorado, AR.
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