Retirement Systems of Alabama Trims Position in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA)

Retirement Systems of Alabama reduced its position in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) by 0.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 44,891 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 248 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama owned about 0.22% of Murphy USA worth $22,524,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Stifel Financial Corp grew its position in shares of Murphy USA by 22.2% in the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 8,385 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $4,133,000 after purchasing an additional 1,526 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. acquired a new stake in Murphy USA in the 4th quarter worth about $11,529,000. Oak Thistle LLC purchased a new stake in Murphy USA in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,207,000. Assetmark Inc. increased its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 6.1% during the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 35,240 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $17,369,000 after acquiring an additional 2,028 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CWA Asset Management Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Murphy USA during the 3rd quarter worth about $1,573,000. 80.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Murphy USA Trading Down 3.2 %

Shares of MUSA stock opened at $499.61 on Friday. Murphy USA Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $361.74 and a fifty-two week high of $561.08. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $509.52 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $507.16. The stock has a market cap of $10.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.61 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a quick ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.19.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last announced its quarterly 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 net margin of 2.48% and a return on equity of 62.73%. On average, analysts anticipate that Murphy USA Inc. will post 23.62 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Murphy USA from $550.00 to $554.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday. StockNews.com downgraded Murphy USA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. 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.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $512.80.

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.