Geode Capital Management LLC Acquires 33,489 Shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA)

Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) by 8.6% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 421,760 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 33,489 shares during the quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Murphy USA were worth $211,667,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in MUSA. Captrust Financial Advisors purchased a new position in Murphy USA during the third quarter worth $204,000. Hilltop Holdings Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 39.7% during the 3rd quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc. now owns 598 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $294,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares during the period. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC bought a new position in Murphy USA during the 3rd quarter valued at about $222,000. Quantinno Capital Management LP raised its position in Murphy USA by 35.3% in the 3rd quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 863 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $425,000 after purchasing an additional 225 shares during the period. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp lifted its stake in Murphy USA by 22.2% in the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 8,385 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $4,133,000 after purchasing an additional 1,526 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.81% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently commented on MUSA shares. Melius initiated coverage on Murphy USA in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. They set a “buy” rating and a $600.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Murphy USA from $555.00 to $550.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Melius Research upgraded Murphy USA to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Murphy USA from $550.00 to $554.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Murphy USA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Murphy USA presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $525.67.

Insider Buying and Selling at Murphy USA

In related news, Director Rosemary Turner sold 797 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $496.10, for a total transaction of $395,391.70. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CMO Renee M. Bacon sold 2,000 shares of Murphy USA stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $469.58, for a total value of $939,160.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 5,927 shares in the company, valued at $2,783,200.66. This trade represents a 25.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 3,594 shares of company stock valued at $1,695,043. 9.04% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Murphy USA Stock Performance

Shares of Murphy USA stock opened at $470.95 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $471.35 and its 200-day moving average price is $493.26. The firm has a market cap of $9.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.46 and a beta of 0.73. Murphy USA Inc. has a 12 month low of $382.04 and a 12 month high of $561.08.

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

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

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