Wall Street Zen Upgrades Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) to “Strong-Buy”

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) was upgraded by investment analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note issued on Sunday, Wall Street Zen reports.

Several other research analysts have also commented on the company. Bank of America lifted their price target on Murphy USA from $600.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Capital One Financial initiated coverage on Murphy USA in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $710.00 price objective for the company. Zacks Research downgraded Murphy USA from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, June 22nd. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Murphy USA from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Murphy USA from $520.00 to $570.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $606.89.

Murphy USA Stock Performance

NYSE MUSA opened at $525.23 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $531.26 and a two-hundred day moving average of $545.60. The company has a market capitalization of $9.70 billion, a PE ratio of 15.99, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 0.29. Murphy USA has a 1 year low of $349.83 and a 1 year high of $636.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.77, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.54.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The specialty retailer reported $11.27 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.95 by $1.32. Murphy USA had a return on equity of 96.01% and a net margin of 2.87%. The business had revenue of $6.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.03 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $7.36 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 36.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that Murphy USA will post 34.75 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Murphy USA

In related news, SVP Eric Bartko sold 100 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $523.60, for a total transaction of $52,360.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 252 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $131,947.20. This trade represents a 28.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Rosemary Turner sold 966 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $571.88, for a total value of $552,436.08. Following the sale, the director directly owned 449 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $256,774.12. This represents a 68.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 9.02% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Murphy USA

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Murphy USA during the second quarter worth about $915,734,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in shares of Murphy USA in the second quarter valued at approximately $78,372,000. Engineers Gate Manager LP lifted its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 21,322.2% during the second quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 103,041 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $55,526,000 after buying an additional 102,560 shares during the period. Man Group plc purchased a new position in shares of Murphy USA during the second quarter valued at approximately $49,320,000. Finally, Encompass Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Murphy USA during the first quarter valued at approximately $44,457,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.81% of the company’s stock.

Murphy USA Company Profile

Murphy USA Inc operates a nationwide network of retail gasoline stations and convenience stores in the United States. Its stores sell branded and unbranded motor fuel, tobacco products, nicotine products, beverages, snacks, packaged food, and other convenience items. Some locations also offer additional services such as lottery products and car washes.

The company operates stores under the Murphy USA and Murphy Express brands, primarily in proximity to Walmart stores and along major roads.