Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) Issues Earnings Results

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday. The specialty retailer reported $7.20 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.64 by $0.56, Briefing.com reports. Murphy USA had a net margin of 2.50% and a return on equity of 64.73%. The business had revenue of $5.24 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.54 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $7.69 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year.

Murphy USA Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MUSA traded up $20.88 during trading on Thursday, reaching $493.51. 195,650 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 198,181. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.20, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.52. The company has a 50 day moving average of $497.83 and a 200-day moving average of $474.64. Murphy USA has a 12 month low of $350.55 and a 12 month high of $552.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.87 and a beta of 0.77.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, November 4th will be issued a $0.48 dividend. This is a positive change from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.39%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 4th. Murphy USA’s payout ratio is currently 7.76%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently issued reports on MUSA. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on shares of Murphy USA from $538.00 to $537.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Murphy USA from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. StockNews.com lowered Murphy USA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, October 26th. Raymond James raised their price objective on Murphy USA from $530.00 to $545.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut Murphy USA from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $415.00 to $435.00 in a report on Thursday, September 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Murphy USA has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $495.33.

Insider Transactions at Murphy USA

In other Murphy USA news, Director James W. Keyes sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $511.54, for a total transaction of $1,023,080.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 16,114 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,242,955.56. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, Director Robert Madison Murphy sold 16,755 shares of Murphy USA stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $514.54, for a total transaction of $8,621,117.70. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 396,384 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $203,955,423.36. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director James W. Keyes sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $511.54, for a total value of $1,023,080.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 16,114 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,242,955.56. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 32,209 shares of company stock worth $16,564,666. 9.04% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.