Impax Asset Management Group plc Takes Position in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA)

Impax Asset Management Group plc acquired a new stake in shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 1,242 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $623,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. FMR LLC grew its position in Murphy USA by 6.0% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,751,206 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $863,116,000 after acquiring an additional 99,253 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its position in Murphy USA by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 590,558 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $291,068,000 after acquiring an additional 8,507 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in Murphy USA by 69.9% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 428,379 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $211,135,000 after acquiring an additional 176,308 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Murphy USA by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 388,271 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $191,407,000 after acquiring an additional 16,006 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in Murphy USA by 9.6% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 126,419 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $61,873,000 after acquiring an additional 11,103 shares during the last quarter. 80.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on MUSA shares. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on Murphy USA from $550.00 to $554.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Murphy USA from $555.00 to $550.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Murphy USA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 15th. One research 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’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $510.80.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Rosemary Turner sold 797 shares of the firm’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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 9.04% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Murphy USA Trading Up 2.7 %

NYSE MUSA opened at $469.93 on Wednesday. Murphy USA Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $382.04 and a fifty-two week high of $561.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a current ratio of 0.79. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $492.47 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $504.32. The stock has a market cap of $9.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.42 and a beta of 0.79.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The specialty retailer reported $6.96 EPS for the quarter, beating 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, analysts forecast 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. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 24th will be paid a $0.49 dividend. This represents a $1.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 24th. This is a boost from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. Murphy USA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 7.93%.

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.