Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC Increases Position in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA)

Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) by 57.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 26,846 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 9,827 shares during the period. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC owned about 0.13% of Murphy USA worth $13,470,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Gardner Lewis Asset Management L P acquired a new position in Murphy USA during the 4th quarter worth $415,000. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC lifted its position in shares of Murphy USA by 4.1% during the fourth quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 4,212 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $2,113,000 after purchasing an additional 164 shares during the last quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA grew its stake in Murphy USA by 9.1% in the fourth quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 2,780 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,395,000 after purchasing an additional 232 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Murphy USA in the fourth quarter valued at about $112,741,000. Finally, Blair William & Co. IL raised its stake in Murphy USA by 248.9% during the fourth quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 5,240 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $2,629,000 after buying an additional 3,738 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.81% of the company’s stock.

Murphy USA Price Performance

NYSE MUSA opened at $459.90 on Monday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $471.75 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $495.15. Murphy USA Inc. has a 52 week low of $382.04 and a 52 week high of $561.08. The stock has a market cap of $9.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.00 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The specialty retailer reported $6.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.46 by $0.50. Murphy USA had a return on equity of 61.60% and a net margin of 2.48%. Analysts forecast that Murphy USA Inc. will post 26.45 EPS for the current year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 5th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 24th were issued a dividend of $0.49 per share. This represents a $1.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.43%. This is a positive change from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. Murphy USA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 8.10%.

Insider Activity at Murphy USA

In other Murphy USA news, CMO Renee M. Bacon sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $469.58, for a total transaction of $939,160.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 5,927 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,783,200.66. This trade represents a 25.23 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Rosemary Turner sold 797 shares of the business’s 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. Insiders have sold a total of 3,594 shares of company stock worth $1,695,043 over the last ninety days. 9.04% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Melius began coverage on Murphy USA in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $600.00 price target for the company. StockNews.com cut shares of Murphy USA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Royal Bank of Canada raised 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, February 6th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Murphy USA from $555.00 to $550.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Melius Research raised shares of Murphy USA to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $525.67.

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.