Arcadia Investment Management Corp MI Raises Stock Holdings in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA)

Arcadia Investment Management Corp MI boosted its holdings in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) by 13.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,212 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after buying an additional 258 shares during the quarter. Arcadia Investment Management Corp MI’s holdings in Murphy USA were worth $1,110,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Allianz Asset Management GmbH raised its position in Murphy USA by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 107,752 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $54,065,000 after buying an additional 2,183 shares during the last quarter. Wolverine Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Murphy USA by 110.3% during the 4th quarter. Wolverine Asset Management LLC now owns 346 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $174,000 after purchasing an additional 3,700 shares during the last quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC increased its position in shares of Murphy USA by 120.6% during the 4th quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 2,334 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,171,000 after purchasing an additional 1,276 shares during the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Murphy USA by 25.8% during the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 1,008 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $506,000 after purchasing an additional 207 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc increased its position in shares of Murphy USA by 5.4% during the 4th quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 630 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $316,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.81% of the company’s stock.

Murphy USA Price Performance

NYSE MUSA opened at $461.39 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $9.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.07 and a beta of 0.79. Murphy USA Inc. has a 12 month low of $382.04 and a 12 month high of $561.08. The company’s 50 day moving average is $497.77 and its two-hundred day moving average is $505.46. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18.

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, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.46 by $0.50. Murphy USA had a net margin of 2.48% and a return on equity of 61.60%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Murphy USA Inc. will post 26.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 5th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th will be paid a dividend of $0.49 per share. This is a boost from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 24th. This represents a $1.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.42%. Murphy USA’s payout ratio is 7.93%.

Insider Activity at Murphy USA

In related news, Director Rosemary Turner sold 797 shares of Murphy USA stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $496.10, for a total transaction of $395,391.70. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 9.04% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MUSA has been the subject of several research reports. StockNews.com lowered shares of Murphy USA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 15th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Murphy USA from $550.00 to $554.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Murphy USA from $555.00 to $550.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $510.80.

Murphy USA 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.