Tidal Investments LLC Increases Position in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA)

Tidal Investments LLC raised its position in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) by 122.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,966 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after buying an additional 1,635 shares during the period. Tidal Investments LLC’s holdings in Murphy USA were worth $1,462,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in MUSA. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Murphy USA by 49,501.3% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 388,874 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $191,664,000 after acquiring an additional 388,090 shares during the last quarter. Fiera Capital Corp purchased a new stake in Murphy USA in the third quarter valued at approximately $53,387,000. FMR LLC raised its position in Murphy USA by 6.0% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,751,206 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $863,116,000 after purchasing an additional 99,253 shares during the period. Argent Capital Management LLC raised its position in Murphy USA by 1,359.6% in the second quarter. Argent Capital Management LLC now owns 93,326 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $43,813,000 after purchasing an additional 86,932 shares during the period. Finally, World Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Murphy USA in the third quarter valued at approximately $30,122,000. 80.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Murphy USA Stock Performance

Shares of MUSA stock opened at $539.71 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.19. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $513.31 and a 200 day moving average price of $499.42. The company has a market cap of $10.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.27 and a beta of 0.78. Murphy USA Inc. has a 12 month low of $350.55 and a 12 month high of $561.08.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The specialty retailer reported $7.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.64 by $0.56. Murphy USA had a net margin of 2.48% and a return on equity of 62.73%. The company had revenue of $5.24 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.54 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $7.69 earnings per share. Murphy USA’s revenue for the quarter was down 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Murphy USA Inc. will post 23.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 4th were paid a $0.48 dividend. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.36%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 4th. This is an increase from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. Murphy USA’s dividend payout ratio is currently 7.92%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on MUSA. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered Murphy USA from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $415.00 to $435.00 in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Murphy USA from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Murphy USA presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $495.33.

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.