Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) SVP Renee Bacon Sells 353 Shares

Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) SVP Renee Bacon sold 353 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $373.39, for a total transaction of $131,806.67. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 5,927 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,213,082.53. The trade was a 5.62% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link.

Murphy USA Trading Down 1.4%

MUSA opened at $363.67 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.75 billion, a PE ratio of 14.98, a P/E/G ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 0.38. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $413.70 and its 200 day moving average price is $392.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.47, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.36. Murphy USA Inc. has a 12-month low of $345.23 and a 12-month high of $523.09.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The specialty retailer reported $7.53 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.67 by $0.86. The company had revenue of $4.74 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.88 billion. Murphy USA had a net margin of 2.43% and a return on equity of 75.75%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $6.96 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Murphy USA Inc. will post 26.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on MUSA. Stephens reduced their target price on Murphy USA from $475.00 to $450.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. KeyCorp set a $500.00 price target on Murphy USA in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price objective on Murphy USA from $467.00 to $445.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Murphy USA in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Murphy USA from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $457.50.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its stake in 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 buying an additional 28 shares during the last quarter. Huntington National Bank increased its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 32 shares during the period. Ameriflex Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Murphy USA in the 3rd quarter worth about $26,000. AlphaQuest LLC lifted its position in Murphy USA by 317.6% in the 3rd quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 71 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Murphy USA by 423.1% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 68 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the period. 80.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Murphy USA Company 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.