Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) Shares Gap Down on Disappointing Earnings

Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA)’s share price gapped down before the market opened on Thursday following a dissappointing earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $411.80, but opened at $385.00. Murphy USA shares last traded at $397.33, with a volume of 90,981 shares trading hands.

The specialty retailer reported $3.12 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.09 by ($0.97). The company had revenue of $4.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.89 billion. Murphy USA had a return on equity of 70.92% and a net margin of 2.59%. Murphy USA’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $4.80 earnings per share.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 26th were given 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 0.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 23rd. Murphy USA’s payout ratio is presently 6.59%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have commented on MUSA. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Murphy USA from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $375.00 to $425.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 4th. Stephens reiterated 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 boosted their price objective on shares of Murphy USA from $440.00 to $460.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Murphy USA from $382.00 to $408.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Murphy USA presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $408.60.

Insider Activity at Murphy USA

In related news, SVP Robert J. Chumley sold 7,016 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $404.42, for a total value of $2,837,410.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 6,448 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,607,700.16. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, Director Jeanne Linder Phillips sold 1,525 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $411.42, for a total transaction of $627,415.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 2,670 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,098,491.40. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Robert J. Chumley sold 7,016 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $404.42, for a total transaction of $2,837,410.72. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 6,448 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,607,700.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 10,440 shares of company stock valued at $4,244,582. 9.04% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Murphy USA

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in Murphy USA by 15.0% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,080,410 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $369,208,000 after acquiring an additional 140,879 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in Murphy USA by 30.8% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 308,398 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $105,389,000 after acquiring an additional 72,537 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Murphy USA by 35,556.0% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 269,916 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $96,241,000 after acquiring an additional 269,159 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Murphy USA in the 4th quarter worth approximately $81,560,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Murphy USA by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 194,560 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $69,372,000 after acquiring an additional 1,986 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.81% of the company’s stock.

Murphy USA Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $8.29 billion, a PE ratio of 16.12 and a beta of 0.77. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $415.60 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $384.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.15, a quick ratio of 0.56 and a current ratio of 0.95.

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.