Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) Reaches New 1-Year High After Analyst Upgrade

Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA)’s share price hit a new 52-week high on Thursday after Bank of America upgraded the stock from an underperform rating to a neutral rating. Bank of America now has a $550.00 price target on the stock, up from their previous price target of $350.00. Murphy USA traded as high as $539.71 and last traded at $523.6010, with a volume of 23637 shares. The stock had previously closed at $519.78.

MUSA has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price target on shares of Murphy USA from $467.00 to $445.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. KeyCorp set a $500.00 price target on shares of Murphy USA in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Murphy USA from $400.00 to $450.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Murphy USA from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 28th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on shares of Murphy USA in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $539.00 price target on the stock. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Murphy USA presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $469.14.

Insider Activity at Murphy USA

In related news, Director Jeanne Linder Phillips sold 1,155 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $395.19, for a total value of $456,444.45. Following the sale, the director owned 1,543 shares in the company, valued at $609,778.17. This represents a 42.81% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Eric J. Bartko sold 345 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $404.84, for a total transaction of $139,669.80. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 352 shares in the company, valued at $142,503.68. This represents a 49.50% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 10,919 shares of company stock worth $4,490,690. 9.02% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Murphy USA News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Murphy USA this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America upgraded MUSA from “underperform” to “neutral” and raised its price target to $550 from $350, providing fresh analyst support and a higher valuation anchor near current levels. BofA Upgrade (Benzinga)
• Positive Sentiment: A recent coverage piece highlights a reported 86% surge in profit, underscoring strong recent profitability and raising the question of repeatability — a tailwind for sentiment if momentum persists. Stocks to watch: Murphy USA’s profit soared 86%. Can it repeat?
• Neutral Sentiment: The Q1 earnings transcript is available for investors to review management commentary on margins, fuel trends and guidance — useful for parsing forward drivers but not itself a result. Murphy USA (MUSA) Q1 2025 Earnings Transcript
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst consensus remains roughly a “Hold” (average rating), indicating mixed expectations among brokerages rather than broad bullish conviction. Murphy USA Given Average Rating of “Hold” by Analysts
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks cautions that MUSA may lack the two key ingredients that typically lead to an earnings beat in its upcoming report, highlighting downside risk ahead of the next release. Murphy USA (MUSA) Earnings Expected to Grow: What to Know Ahead of Next Week’s Release

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Murphy USA

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in MUSA. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its holdings in shares of Murphy USA by 82.4% in the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 62 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 28 shares during the last quarter. Huntington National Bank raised 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 last quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Murphy USA in the 3rd quarter worth about $26,000. AlphaQuest LLC raised its holdings in shares of Murphy USA by 317.6% in the 3rd quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 71 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Murphy USA by 423.1% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 68 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.81% of the company’s stock.

Murphy USA Stock Up 2.3%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.47, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.80. The company has a market cap of $9.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.41 and a beta of 0.23. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $458.79 and its two-hundred day moving average is $417.41.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The specialty retailer reported $7.53 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.67 by $0.86. The company had revenue of $4.74 billion for 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 was up .7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $6.96 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Murphy USA Inc. will post 26.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Murphy USA Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 5th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 23rd were paid a $0.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 23rd. This represents a $2.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. Murphy USA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 10.38%.

About Murphy USA

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.