Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) Shares Sold by Bridgewater Associates LP

Bridgewater Associates LP cut its holdings in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) by 38.3% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 7,958 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 4,946 shares during the quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP’s holdings in Murphy USA were worth $3,922,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in Murphy USA by 777.8% during the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 79 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the period. Mather Group LLC. boosted its holdings in Murphy USA by 141.4% in the 2nd quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 70 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC boosted its holdings in Murphy USA by 40.4% in the 3rd quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 73 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Key Financial Inc raised its holdings in shares of Murphy USA by 942.9% during the third quarter. Key Financial Inc now owns 146 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $72,000 after acquiring an additional 132 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GHP Investment Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Murphy USA by 82.1% during the second quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 173 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $81,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. 80.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MUSA has been the subject of several research reports. Raymond James boosted their price target on Murphy USA from $530.00 to $545.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Murphy USA from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. StockNews.com lowered shares of Murphy USA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, October 26th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded shares of Murphy USA from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $415.00 to $435.00 in a report on Thursday, September 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Murphy USA presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $495.33.

Murphy USA Stock Performance

NYSE:MUSA opened at $548.94 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average is $500.48 and its two-hundred day moving average is $489.98. Murphy USA Inc. has a 1-year low of $350.55 and a 1-year high of $561.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.19, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.41. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.83 and a beta of 0.75.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The specialty retailer reported $7.20 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.64 by $0.56. Murphy USA had a return on equity of 62.73% and a net margin of 2.48%. The firm had revenue of $5.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.54 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $7.69 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Murphy USA Inc. will post 23.59 EPS for the current year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 4th will be given a $0.48 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 4th. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.35%. This is a boost from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. Murphy USA’s dividend payout ratio is presently 7.92%.

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.