TCW Group Inc. Acquires Shares of 14,612 Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA)

TCW Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 14,612 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $7,332,000. TCW Group Inc. owned 0.07% of Murphy USA at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Creative Planning raised its position in Murphy USA by 4.8% during the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 2,340 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,153,000 after acquiring an additional 107 shares during the period. Private Advisor Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Murphy USA during the 3rd quarter worth about $522,000. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Murphy USA in the 3rd quarter valued at about $223,000. PFG Investments LLC purchased a new stake in Murphy USA during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $214,000. Finally, DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale raised its holdings in shares of Murphy USA by 23.3% during the third quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 2,952 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,469,000 after acquiring an additional 557 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.81% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Rosemary Turner sold 797 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $496.10, for a total value of $395,391.70. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 9.04% of the company’s stock.

Murphy USA Price Performance

Murphy USA stock opened at $445.19 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $495.66 and a 200 day moving average price of $505.02. Murphy USA Inc. has a 12-month low of $382.04 and a 12-month high of $561.08. The stock has a market cap of $9.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.40 and a beta of 0.79.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The specialty retailer reported $6.96 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.46 by $0.50. Murphy USA had a net margin of 2.48% and a return on equity of 61.60%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Murphy USA Inc. will post 26.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Murphy USA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 5th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 24th will be paid a $0.49 dividend. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 24th. This is a positive change from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. Murphy USA’s dividend payout ratio is 7.93%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

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.