Nuveen Asset Management LLC Has $37.22 Million Stake in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA)

Nuveen Asset Management LLC trimmed its position in shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) by 8.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 74,188 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 6,787 shares during the quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC owned approximately 0.37% of Murphy USA worth $37,224,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in MUSA. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its holdings in Murphy USA by 6.4% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 347 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $174,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE boosted its holdings in Murphy USA by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 4,444 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $2,230,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Zacks Investment Management boosted its holdings in Murphy USA by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Zacks Investment Management now owns 8,938 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $4,485,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC boosted its holdings in Murphy USA by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC now owns 967 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $485,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares in the last quarter. Finally, V Square Quantitative Management LLC boosted its holdings in Murphy USA by 37.0% in the fourth quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 100 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. 80.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Murphy USA Price Performance

NYSE:MUSA opened at $456.99 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $9.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.88 and a beta of 0.59. Murphy USA Inc. has a one year low of $424.03 and a one year high of $561.08. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $474.68 and a 200 day moving average price of $492.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.37.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The specialty retailer reported $2.63 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.87 by ($1.24). The firm had revenue of $4.53 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.79 billion. Murphy USA had a return on equity of 61.60% and a net margin of 2.48%. Murphy USA’s revenue was down 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.12 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Murphy USA Inc. will post 26.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, May 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.44%. This is a positive change from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 12th. Murphy USA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 8.44%.

Insider Activity at Murphy USA

In other Murphy USA news, CMO Renee M. Bacon sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 owns 5,927 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,783,200.66. This represents a 25.23% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Jeanne Linder Phillips sold 797 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $452.31, for a total transaction of $360,491.07. Following the transaction, the director now owns 2,349 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,062,476.19. The trade was a 25.33% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 10.12% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on MUSA. KeyCorp decreased their price objective on shares of Murphy USA from $550.00 to $525.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 9th. Melius Research upgraded Murphy USA to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Murphy USA from $550.00 to $554.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Raymond James downgraded Murphy USA from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Murphy USA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $526.29.

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.