Zacks Research Decreases Earnings Estimates for Murphy USA

Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) – Analysts at Zacks Research lowered their Q1 2025 EPS estimates for shares of Murphy USA in a research note issued on Monday, April 14th. Zacks Research analyst N. Choudhury now expects that the specialty retailer will post earnings per share of $3.72 for the quarter, down from their previous estimate of $3.76. The consensus estimate for Murphy USA’s current full-year earnings is $26.45 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Murphy USA’s Q4 2025 earnings at $6.61 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $6.43 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $28.38 EPS.

MUSA has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Melius Research raised shares of Murphy USA to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Melius began coverage on Murphy USA in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $600.00 price objective for the company. StockNews.com raised Murphy USA from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. KeyCorp initiated coverage on Murphy USA in a report on Friday, April 11th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $550.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Stephens upgraded shares of Murphy USA to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $539.00.

Murphy USA Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE MUSA opened at $507.05 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18. The firm has a market cap of $10.04 billion, a PE ratio of 20.95 and a beta of 0.73. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $468.99 and its 200 day simple moving average is $492.85. Murphy USA has a 12-month low of $382.04 and a 12-month high of $561.08.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The specialty retailer reported $6.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.46 by $0.50. Murphy USA had a return on equity of 61.60% and a net margin of 2.48%.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 5th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 24th were paid a $0.49 dividend. This is a positive change from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.39%. Murphy USA’s dividend payout ratio is presently 8.10%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CMO Renee M. Bacon sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $469.58, for a total transaction of $939,160.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 5,927 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,783,200.66. This trade represents a 25.23 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Rosemary Turner sold 797 shares of Murphy USA stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $496.10, for a total value of $395,391.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 3,594 shares of company stock worth $1,695,043 over the last quarter. Insiders own 9.04% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Murphy USA

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MUSA. UMB Bank n.a. grew its position in shares of Murphy USA by 6.4% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 347 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $174,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE grew its holdings in Murphy USA by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 4,444 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $2,230,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares during the period. Zacks Investment Management increased its position in Murphy USA by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Zacks Investment Management now owns 8,938 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $4,485,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC now owns 967 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $485,000 after buying an additional 26 shares during the period. Finally, V Square Quantitative Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Murphy USA by 37.0% during the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 100 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 27 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.81% of the company’s stock.

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.