Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) Announces Dividend Increase – $0.72 Per Share

Murphy USA Inc. (NYSE:MUSA) announced a quarterly dividend on Thursday, October 22nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.72 per share by the specialty retailer on Tuesday, December 1st. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 4th. This is a 10.8% increase from Murphy USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65.

Murphy USA has raised its dividend payment by an average of 0.5% annually over the last three years and has increased its dividend annually for the last 4 consecutive years. Murphy USA has a dividend payout ratio of 9.3% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect Murphy USA to earn $30.23 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $2.60 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 8.6%.

Murphy USA Stock Performance

MUSA opened at $533.07 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.77. Murphy USA has a 12-month low of $349.83 and a 12-month high of $636.04. The business has a 50 day moving average of $528.52 and a 200-day moving average of $547.95. The stock has a market cap of $9.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.23, a PEG ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 0.29.

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The specialty retailer reported $11.27 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $9.95 by $1.32. Murphy USA had a net margin of 2.87% and a return on equity of 96.01%. The business had revenue of $6.81 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.03 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $7.36 EPS. Murphy USA’s revenue was up 36.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that Murphy USA will post 34.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Murphy USA

In other Murphy USA news, Director Rosemary Turner sold 966 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $571.88, for a total value of $552,436.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 449 shares in the company, valued at approximately $256,774.12. This represents a 68.27% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Eric Bartko sold 100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $523.60, for a total value of $52,360.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 252 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $131,947.20. This represents a 28.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 9.02% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Murphy USA

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in Murphy USA in the second quarter valued at approximately $915,734,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Murphy USA during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $78,372,000. Recurrent Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Murphy USA by 23.2% during the 1st quarter. Recurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 146,119 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $71,986,000 after buying an additional 27,513 shares during the period. Engineers Gate Manager LP increased its stake in shares of Murphy USA by 21,322.2% in the 2nd quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 103,041 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $55,526,000 after acquiring an additional 102,560 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Copeland Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Murphy USA in the 3rd quarter valued at $54,143,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.81% of the company’s stock.

Murphy USA Company Profile

Murphy USA Inc is a U.S. operator of retail fuel and convenience stores. The company sells gasoline and diesel fuel along with tobacco products, packaged beverages, snacks, candy, grocery items, general merchandise and other convenience products. Many locations also offer prepared food and related services.

The company operates stores under the Murphy USA and Murphy Express brands, with a network concentrated primarily in the Southern, Southeastern and Midwestern United States. Murphy USA locations are commonly situated near Walmart stores, while Murphy Express sites generally operate as standalone convenience stores.