Back to top

Image: Bigstock

Is Murphy USA (MUSA) Stock Outpacing Its Oils-Energy Peers This Year?

Read MoreHide Full Article

The Oils-Energy group has plenty of great stocks, but investors should always be looking for companies that are outperforming their peers. Has Murphy USA (MUSA - Free Report) been one of those stocks this year? By taking a look at the stock's year-to-date performance in comparison to its Oils-Energy peers, we might be able to answer that question.

Murphy USA is one of 253 companies in the Oils-Energy group. The Oils-Energy group currently sits at #1 within the Zacks Sector Rank. The Zacks Sector Rank gauges the strength of our 16 individual sector groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups.

The Zacks Rank is a successful stock-picking model that emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions. The system highlights a number of different stocks that could be poised to outperform the broader market over the next one to three months. Murphy USA is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).

Within the past quarter, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for MUSA's full-year earnings has moved 38.4% higher. This is a sign of improving analyst sentiment and a positive earnings outlook trend.

According to our latest data, MUSA has moved about 45% on a year-to-date basis. Meanwhile, stocks in the Oils-Energy group have gained about 33.6% on average. This shows that Murphy USA is outperforming its peers so far this year.

One other Oils-Energy stock that has outperformed the sector so far this year is Schlumberger (SLB - Free Report) . The stock is up 34.1% year-to-date.

For Schlumberger, the consensus EPS estimate for the current year has increased 9.3% over the past three months. The stock currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Looking more specifically, Murphy USA belongs to the Oil and Gas - Refining and Marketing industry, a group that includes 16 individual stocks and currently sits at #3 in the Zacks Industry Rank. Stocks in this group have gained about 28.9% so far this year, so MUSA is performing better this group in terms of year-to-date returns.

Schlumberger, however, belongs to the Oil and Gas - Field Services industry. Currently, this 26-stock industry is ranked #20. The industry has moved +0.4% so far this year.

Investors interested in the Oils-Energy sector may want to keep a close eye on Murphy USA and Schlumberger as they attempt to continue their solid performance.


See More Zacks Research for These Tickers


Normally $25 each - click below to receive one report FREE:


Schlumberger Limited (SLB) - free report >>

Murphy USA Inc. (MUSA) - free report >>

Published in