Zacks Research Analysts Reduce Earnings Estimates for Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA)

Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) – Zacks Research lowered their Q2 2024 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of Murphy USA in a research report issued on Thursday, April 25th. Zacks Research analyst N. Choudhury now anticipates that the specialty retailer will post earnings per share of $6.77 for the quarter, down from their previous forecast of $6.78. The consensus estimate for Murphy USA’s current full-year earnings is $26.29 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Murphy USA’s Q3 2024 earnings at $6.81 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $5.20 EPS and Q1 2026 earnings at $8.72 EPS.

Other research analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Murphy USA from $382.00 to $408.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 8th. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $470.00 price objective on shares of Murphy USA in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Murphy USA from $440.00 to $460.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Murphy USA from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $375.00 to $425.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $408.60.

Murphy USA Stock Performance

Shares of MUSA opened at $413.82 on Monday. Murphy USA has a 12-month low of $268.69 and a 12-month high of $430.83. The stock has a market cap of $8.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.22 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.15. The company has a 50-day moving average of $415.31 and a two-hundred day moving average of $384.40.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 7th. The specialty retailer reported $7.00 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.79 by $1.21. Murphy USA had a return on equity of 70.92% and a net margin of 2.59%. The company had revenue of $5.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.32 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $5.21 earnings per share. Murphy USA’s revenue was down 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 26th were issued a dividend of $0.42 per share. This is a positive change from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.41%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 23rd. Murphy USA’s dividend payout ratio is presently 6.59%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Christopher A. Click sold 664 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $415.55, for a total transaction of $275,925.20. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 2,413 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,002,722.15. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, VP Donald R. Smith, Jr. sold 1,235 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $407.96, for a total transaction of $503,830.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 21,564 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,797,249.44. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Christopher A. Click sold 664 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $415.55, for a total transaction of $275,925.20. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 2,413 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,002,722.15. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 10,440 shares of company stock valued at $4,244,582. Insiders own 9.73% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Murphy USA

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its holdings in Murphy USA by 191.7% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 70 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. acquired a new stake in Murphy USA during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Murphy USA by 394.7% during the fourth quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 94 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in Murphy USA in the fourth quarter worth approximately $44,000. Finally, Delta Asset Management LLC TN boosted its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 70.7% during the 4th quarter. Delta Asset Management LLC TN now owns 128 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. 80.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.