Narus Financial Partners LLC Has $428,000 Stake in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA)

Narus Financial Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) by 6.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,020 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the period. Narus Financial Partners LLC’s holdings in Murphy USA were worth $428,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Murphy USA by 35,556.0% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 269,916 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $96,241,000 after buying an additional 269,159 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Murphy USA during the 4th quarter worth $81,560,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Murphy USA by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 194,560 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $69,372,000 after acquiring an additional 1,986 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Murphy USA by 1.9% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 164,400 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $56,180,000 after acquiring an additional 2,996 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 8.5% in the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 153,213 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $52,358,000 after purchasing an additional 12,015 shares in the last quarter. 80.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO R Andrew Clyde sold 10,392 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $440.32, for a total transaction of $4,575,805.44. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 199,563 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $87,871,580.16. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Rosemary Turner sold 205 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $400.00, for a total transaction of $82,000.00. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO R Andrew Clyde sold 10,392 shares of Murphy USA stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $440.32, for a total transaction of $4,575,805.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 199,563 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $87,871,580.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 11,451 shares of company stock valued at $5,032,498 in the last ninety days. 9.73% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Murphy USA Trading Down 1.5 %

MUSA stock traded down $6.86 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $456.62. The company had a trading volume of 54,640 shares, compared to its average volume of 216,160. The stock has a market cap of $9.46 billion, a PE ratio of 19.45 and a beta of 0.77. The business has a 50-day moving average of $443.44 and a 200-day moving average of $409.74. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.28. Murphy USA Inc. has a one year low of $282.49 and a one year high of $489.89.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The specialty retailer reported $3.12 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.09 by ($0.97). The firm had revenue of $4.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.89 billion. Murphy USA had a return on equity of 64.45% and a net margin of 2.43%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $4.80 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Murphy USA Inc. will post 24.57 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 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 20th were paid a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.39%. This is an increase from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 17th. Murphy USA’s payout ratio is currently 7.39%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have weighed in on MUSA shares. StockNews.com cut shares of Murphy USA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 9th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Murphy USA from $440.00 to $460.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 19th. Finally, Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $470.00 target price on shares of Murphy USA in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $408.60.

Murphy USA Company Profile

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.