Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) Shares Sold by Cadence Bank

Cadence Bank lowered its stake in shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) by 0.7% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 414,720 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 3,000 shares during the period. Murphy USA comprises about 14.1% of Cadence Bank’s portfolio, making the stock its largest holding. Cadence Bank owned 2.05% of Murphy USA worth $204,403,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 777.8% in the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 79 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the period. Mather Group LLC. increased its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 141.4% in the 2nd quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 70 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC raised 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 purchasing an additional 21 shares during the period. Key Financial Inc boosted its position in Murphy USA by 942.9% during the third quarter. Key Financial Inc now owns 146 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $72,000 after purchasing an additional 132 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GHP Investment Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 82.1% during the 2nd quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 173 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $81,000 after buying an additional 78 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.81% of the company’s stock.

Murphy USA Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of MUSA stock traded down $1.73 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $549.57. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 18,353 shares, compared to its average volume of 195,461. Murphy USA Inc. has a 1-year low of $350.55 and a 1-year high of $558.65. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $497.63 and its 200 day moving average price is $487.30. The company has a market capitalization of $11.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.74 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.19, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.41.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The specialty retailer reported $7.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.64 by $0.56. Murphy USA had a return on equity of 62.73% and a net margin of 2.48%. The company had revenue of $5.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.54 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $7.69 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Murphy USA Inc. will post 23.59 EPS for the current year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 4th will be given a dividend of $0.48 per share. 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. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 4th. Murphy USA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 7.92%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on 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 report on Saturday, October 26th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on Murphy USA from $538.00 to $537.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Raymond James upped their target price on Murphy USA from $530.00 to $545.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered Murphy USA from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and lifted their price target for the stock 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 issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Murphy USA presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $495.33.

About Murphy USA

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.