Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) Now Covered by Analysts at Bank of America

Equities research analysts at Bank of America began coverage on shares of Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) in a research note issued on Friday. The firm set an “underperform” rating on the specialty retailer’s stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. KeyCorp decreased their price objective on Murphy USA from $480.00 to $460.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on Murphy USA in a research note on Wednesday, October 15th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $405.00 price objective on the stock. Zacks Research raised shares of Murphy USA from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 4th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Murphy USA in a report on Monday, December 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $474.00.

Murphy USA Price Performance

Shares of Murphy USA stock traded down $15.12 on Friday, hitting $413.86. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 4,778 shares, compared to its average volume of 246,436. The company has a quick ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.07. Murphy USA has a 52-week low of $345.23 and a 52-week high of $523.09. The company has a market capitalization of $7.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.74 and a beta of 0.39. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $389.30 and a 200-day moving average price of $391.99.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The specialty retailer reported $7.25 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.60 by $0.65. Murphy USA had a return on equity of 69.87% and a net margin of 2.43%.The firm had revenue of $5.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.11 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $7.20 EPS. Murphy USA’s quarterly revenue was down 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Murphy USA will post 26.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO R Andrew Clyde sold 24,733 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $381.33, for a total transaction of $9,431,434.89. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 131,024 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $49,963,381.92. This represents a 15.88% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Malynda K. West sold 4,051 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $425.00, for a total value of $1,721,675.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 117,389 shares in the company, valued at approximately $49,890,325. This trade represents a 3.34% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 45,034 shares of company stock valued at $17,349,722 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 9.04% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Murphy USA

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vista Finance LLC boosted its holdings in Murphy USA by 4.0% in the 2nd quarter. Vista Finance LLC now owns 646 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $263,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Murphy USA by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 585 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $227,000 after acquiring an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its holdings in Murphy USA by 82.4% in the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 62 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 28 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Murphy USA by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 1,470 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $571,000 after buying an additional 28 shares during the period. Finally, Fortune Financial Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Murphy USA by 1.6% during the second quarter. Fortune Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,821 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $741,000 after acquiring an additional 29 shares during the period. 80.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.