Aigen Investment Management LP Has $356,000 Position in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA)

Aigen Investment Management LP lessened its holdings in Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) by 34.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 709 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 366 shares during the quarter. Aigen Investment Management LP’s holdings in Murphy USA were worth $356,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Stifel Financial Corp increased its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 22.2% in the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 8,385 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $4,133,000 after acquiring an additional 1,526 shares in the last quarter. Oak Thistle LLC purchased a new position in Murphy USA during the 4th quarter worth $1,207,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. bought a new stake in shares of Murphy USA during the 4th quarter worth $11,529,000. Assetmark Inc. raised its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 6.1% during the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 35,240 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $17,369,000 after purchasing an additional 2,028 shares during the period. Finally, CWA Asset Management Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Murphy USA during the 3rd quarter worth $1,573,000. Institutional investors own 80.81% of the company’s stock.

Murphy USA Trading Up 1.6 %

Murphy USA stock opened at $455.74 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.12 billion, a PE ratio of 18.83 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.37. The business’s fifty day moving average is $483.94 and its 200 day moving average is $501.89. Murphy USA Inc. has a one year low of $382.04 and a one year high of $561.08.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The specialty retailer reported $6.96 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.46 by $0.50. Murphy USA had a return on equity of 61.60% and a net margin of 2.48%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Murphy USA Inc. will post 26.45 EPS for the current year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 5th. Investors of record on Monday, February 24th were paid a dividend of $0.49 per share. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.43%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 24th. This is an increase from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. 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 Murphy USA stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $469.58, for a total value of $939,160.00. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 5,927 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,783,200.66. The trade was a 25.23 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Rosemary Turner sold 797 shares of Murphy USA stock in a transaction that occurred 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. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 3,594 shares of company stock valued at $1,695,043. 9.04% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com cut Murphy USA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 15th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Murphy USA from $555.00 to $550.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Murphy USA from $550.00 to $554.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $510.80.

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.