Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC Trims Position in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA)

Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC lessened its stake in shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) by 4.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,525 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 65 shares during the quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Murphy USA were worth $765,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Creative Planning grew its holdings in shares of Murphy USA by 4.8% during the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 2,340 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,153,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Murphy USA by 88.5% during the third quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 801 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $395,000 after purchasing an additional 376 shares in the last quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Murphy USA by 10.1% during the third quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 612 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $302,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Murphy USA by 40.4% during the third quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 73 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Murphy USA by 28.0% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,174 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $551,000 after purchasing an additional 257 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.81% of the company’s stock.

Murphy USA Stock Performance

NYSE:MUSA opened at $485.65 on Tuesday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $502.01 and a 200 day moving average of $506.16. The company has a market capitalization of $9.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.07 and a beta of 0.79. Murphy USA Inc. has a 1-year low of $382.04 and a 1-year high of $561.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.41.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The specialty retailer reported $6.96 earnings per share 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%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Murphy USA Inc. will post 26.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 5th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 24th will be given a $0.49 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 24th. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.40%. This is an increase from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. Murphy USA’s payout ratio is presently 8.10%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Murphy USA

In other Murphy USA news, Director Rosemary Turner sold 797 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $496.10, for a total value of $395,391.70. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 9.04% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. StockNews.com lowered Murphy USA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Murphy USA from $555.00 to $550.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Murphy USA from $550.00 to $554.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $510.80.

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.