Neuberger Berman Group LLC Increases Position in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA)

Neuberger Berman Group LLC boosted its position in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) by 1.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 4,943 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the period. Neuberger Berman Group LLC’s holdings in Murphy USA were worth $1,762,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Commerce Bank grew its holdings in Murphy USA by 49.1% in the 4th quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 2,654 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $946,000 after buying an additional 874 shares during the period. Delta Asset Management LLC TN grew its holdings in Murphy USA by 70.7% in the fourth quarter. Delta Asset Management LLC TN now owns 128 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in Murphy USA by 7.6% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 22,127 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $7,890,000 after purchasing an additional 1,564 shares during the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. raised its stake in Murphy USA by 30.6% during the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 32,427 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $11,562,000 after purchasing an additional 7,598 shares during the period. Finally, Quest Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Murphy USA in the 4th quarter valued at $459,000. 80.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Murphy USA Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MUSA opened at $444.45 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.28, a current ratio of 0.87 and a quick ratio of 0.54. Murphy USA Inc. has a 1-year low of $273.20 and a 1-year high of $449.36. The company has a market capitalization of $9.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.65 and a beta of 0.77. The business has a 50-day moving average of $420.22 and a 200-day moving average of $392.02.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The specialty retailer reported $3.12 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.09 by ($0.97). The company had revenue of $4.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.89 billion. Murphy USA had a return on equity of 64.45% and a net margin of 2.43%. The firm’s revenue was down 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $4.80 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Murphy USA Inc. will post 25.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, May 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.44 per share. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.40%. This is a positive change from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 17th. Murphy USA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 7.39%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $470.00 target price on shares of Murphy USA in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on Murphy USA from $382.00 to $408.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 8th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Murphy USA from $440.00 to $460.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, April 19th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Murphy USA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, May 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $408.60.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Rosemary Turner sold 205 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $400.00, for a total transaction of $82,000.00. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, CEO R Andrew Clyde sold 10,392 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $440.32, for a total value of $4,575,805.44. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 199,563 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $87,871,580.16. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Rosemary Turner sold 205 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $400.00, for a total transaction of $82,000.00. 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 quarter. Company insiders own 9.73% of the company’s stock.

Murphy USA 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.