Murphy USA Inc. $MUSA Shares Sold by Argent Capital Management LLC

Argent Capital Management LLC lessened its stake in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) by 5.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 124,014 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 6,626 shares during the quarter. Murphy USA comprises about 1.4% of Argent Capital Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 25th largest holding. Argent Capital Management LLC owned 0.66% of Murphy USA worth $50,042,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MUSA. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Murphy USA by 10.2% during the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 1,685 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $792,000 after acquiring an additional 156 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP increased its position in Murphy USA by 529.0% during the second quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 195 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $79,000 after purchasing an additional 164 shares during the last quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS raised its stake in Murphy USA by 6.1% during the second quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 4,620 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,879,000 after purchasing an additional 266 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its holdings in Murphy USA by 34.6% in the 2nd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 1,629 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $663,000 after purchasing an additional 419 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Creative Planning boosted its holdings in Murphy USA by 9.3% in the 2nd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 2,393 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $973,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.81% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Murphy USA

In other news, SVP Scott G. Woodward sold 137 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $422.44, for a total value of $57,874.28. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Renee M. Bacon sold 2,844 shares of Murphy USA stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $388.61, for a total transaction of $1,105,206.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 3,083 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,198,084.63. This trade represents a 47.98% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders have sold 14,970 shares of company stock valued at $6,212,365. Corporate insiders own 9.04% of the company’s stock.

Murphy USA Stock Up 3.9%

NYSE:MUSA opened at $479.89 on Friday. Murphy USA Inc. has a 52 week low of $345.23 and a 52 week high of $523.09. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $419.82 and its two-hundred day moving average is $398.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.20 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a quick ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.47.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The specialty retailer reported $7.53 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.67 by $0.86. Murphy USA had a return on equity of 75.75% and a net margin of 2.43%.The business had revenue of $4.74 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.88 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $6.96 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up .7% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Murphy USA Inc. will post 26.45 EPS for the current year.

Murphy USA Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. 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 for the company in a report on Thursday, February 5th. KeyCorp set a $500.00 price objective on Murphy USA in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Murphy USA in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Murphy USA from $410.00 to $400.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Bank of America initiated coverage on Murphy USA in a research note on Friday, January 9th. They issued an “underperform” rating on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Murphy USA presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $429.00.

Murphy USA 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.