Principal Financial Group Inc. Purchases 1,482 Shares of Murphy USA Inc. $MUSA

Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) by 4.1% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 38,017 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,482 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.21% of Murphy USA worth $18,779,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its position in shares of Murphy USA by 82.4% in the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 62 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares during the period. Huntington National Bank boosted its holdings in Murphy USA by 106.7% in the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 62 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 32 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Murphy USA by 423.1% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 68 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the period. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new position in Murphy USA in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC grew its stake in Murphy USA by 82.5% in the 1st quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 73 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.81% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MUSA has been the topic of several recent research reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded Murphy USA from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, June 27th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Murphy USA from $520.00 to $570.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday. Zacks Research lowered Murphy USA from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. KeyCorp increased their price objective on Murphy USA from $600.00 to $680.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, June 12th. Finally, Bank of America increased their price objective on Murphy USA from $600.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, July 10th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $585.11.

Murphy USA Stock Performance

Murphy USA stock opened at $618.22 on Thursday. Murphy USA Inc. has a 1-year low of $345.23 and a 1-year high of $636.04. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.42 billion, a PE ratio of 21.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 0.30. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $564.57 and its 200 day simple moving average is $496.66.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The specialty retailer reported $7.28 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.37 by $1.91. The firm had revenue of $4.82 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.70 billion. Murphy USA had a net margin of 2.81% and a return on equity of 91.05%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.63 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Murphy USA Inc. will post 32.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 1st. Investors of record on Monday, May 18th were given a $0.64 dividend. This represents a $2.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. This is a boost from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.63. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 18th. Murphy USA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 8.85%.

Insider Activity at Murphy USA

In other Murphy USA news, Director Diane N. Landen sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $547.25, for a total value of $1,641,750.00. Following the sale, the director owned 53,841 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,464,487.25. This trade represents a 5.28% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Scott G. Woodward sold 158 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $600.50, for a total value of $94,879.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 476 shares in the company, valued at approximately $285,838. The trade was a 24.92% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 46,225 shares of company stock valued at $27,363,392 in the last ninety days. 9.02% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Murphy USA Profile

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.