TD Private Client Wealth LLC Sells 30 Shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA)

TD Private Client Wealth LLC lowered its stake in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) by 3.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 758 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 30 shares during the quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC’s holdings in Murphy USA were worth $380,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of MUSA. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. acquired a new stake in Murphy USA in the fourth quarter worth $50,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 37.0% in the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 100 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 27 shares during the period. Fortitude Family Office LLC increased its position in Murphy USA by 186.1% in the 4th quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 103 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $52,000 after buying an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in Murphy USA during the 4th quarter worth approximately $55,000. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in Murphy USA in the fourth quarter worth approximately $67,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.81% of the company’s stock.

Murphy USA Trading Up 1.3 %

Shares of MUSA stock opened at $447.00 on Tuesday. 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 company has a market capitalization of $8.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.47 and a beta of 0.80. Murphy USA Inc. has a 52-week low of $382.04 and a 52-week high of $561.08. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $473.68 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $496.75.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The specialty retailer reported $6.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.46 by $0.50. Murphy USA had a return on equity of 61.60% and a net margin of 2.48%. Research analysts anticipate that Murphy USA Inc. will post 26.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 5th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 24th were paid a dividend of $0.49 per share. This represents a $1.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.44%. This is a boost from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. Murphy USA’s payout ratio is presently 8.10%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Murphy USA from $555.00 to $550.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 7th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Murphy USA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Murphy USA from $550.00 to $554.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Melius started coverage on shares of Murphy USA in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $600.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Melius Research upgraded Murphy USA to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Murphy USA has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $525.67.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Murphy USA news, CMO Renee M. Bacon sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $469.58, for a total value of $939,160.00. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 5,927 shares in the company, valued at $2,783,200.66. The trade was a 25.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Rosemary Turner sold 797 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $496.10, for a total value of $395,391.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 3,594 shares of company stock valued at $1,695,043. 9.04% of the stock is owned by 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.