Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) Shares Sold by K.J. Harrison & Partners Inc

K.J. Harrison & Partners Inc cut its stake in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) by 16.4% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 5,100 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 1,000 shares during the period. K.J. Harrison & Partners Inc’s holdings in Murphy USA were worth $2,518,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of MUSA. Stifel Financial Corp grew its holdings in shares of Murphy USA by 22.2% in the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 8,385 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $4,133,000 after purchasing an additional 1,526 shares during the period. Oak Thistle LLC acquired a new position in Murphy USA in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,207,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. purchased a new stake in shares of Murphy USA in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $11,529,000. Assetmark Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Murphy USA by 6.1% during the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 35,240 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $17,369,000 after buying an additional 2,028 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CWA Asset Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Murphy USA during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,573,000. 80.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently weighed in on MUSA. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Murphy USA from $550.00 to $554.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Murphy USA from $555.00 to $550.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Murphy USA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Murphy USA currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $510.80.

Insider Transactions at Murphy USA

In other Murphy USA news, Director Rosemary Turner sold 797 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $496.10, for a total value of $395,391.70. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 9.73% of the company’s stock.

Murphy USA Stock Down 1.6 %

Shares of NYSE MUSA opened at $462.67 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18. The business’s 50 day moving average is $491.32 and its two-hundred day moving average is $504.03. Murphy USA Inc. has a 52-week low of $382.04 and a 52-week high of $561.08. The firm has a market cap of $9.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.12 and a beta of 0.79.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The specialty retailer reported $6.96 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.46 by $0.50. Murphy USA had a return on equity of 61.60% and a net margin of 2.48%. Research analysts predict that Murphy USA Inc. will post 26.45 EPS for the current year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 5th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 24th will be paid a dividend of $0.49 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 24th. This is a positive change from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. This represents a $1.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.42%. Murphy USA’s dividend payout ratio is 8.10%.

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.