Ballentine Partners LLC Acquires New Shares in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA)

Ballentine Partners LLC acquired a new position in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 570 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $286,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. V Square Quantitative Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Murphy USA by 40.4% in the 3rd quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 73 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the period. Fortitude Family Office LLC raised its stake in Murphy USA by 186.1% in the fourth quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 103 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $52,000 after buying an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its holdings in Murphy USA by 348.4% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 139 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $70,000 after buying an additional 108 shares during the period. Key Financial Inc boosted its position in Murphy USA by 942.9% during the 3rd quarter. Key Financial Inc now owns 146 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $72,000 after acquiring an additional 132 shares in the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Murphy USA by 135.4% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 186 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $94,000 after acquiring an additional 107 shares in the last quarter. 80.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded Murphy USA from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Murphy USA currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $509.40.

Murphy USA Stock Down 1.1 %

Shares of MUSA stock opened at $476.54 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $516.39 and its 200 day moving average price is $505.97. Murphy USA Inc. has a 1-year low of $350.55 and a 1-year high of $561.08. The company has a market cap of $9.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.66 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.19, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.41.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last posted 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. The firm had revenue of $5.24 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.54 billion. Murphy USA had a net margin of 2.48% and a return on equity of 62.73%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $7.69 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Murphy USA Inc. will post 23.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.