Murphy USA’s 3Q profit dips to $45M from $67M

Murphy USA reported a third-quarter profit of $45 million compared with a $67.9 million profit for the same quarter last year, the El Dorado company reported Wednesday.

Earnings per share dropped to $1.38 for the quarter, which ended Sept. 31, compared with $1.90 a year ago, the company said in an earnings report released after the stock market closed. Zacks Investment Research had forecast per-share earnings of $1.49, which represented a year-over-year drop of 21.6 percent.

The company previously reported net income of $51.8

● million for the second quarter of this year.

The report coincided with the fifth anniversary of Murphy USA becoming a stand-alone public company. Andrew Clyde, president and chief executive officer, said he was impressed with how the business and Murphy USA team have progressed over the past five years.

“I couldn’t be more impressed with how the business and our team have evolved over time, delivering and sustaining superior

financial results through investments in organic growth, coupled with cost discipline, innovation and a commitment to operational excellence,” Clyde said in a statement released with the earnings report.

Though the market was different comparatively from the same period a year ago, Clyde said the third quarter was supported by both an increase in gallons sold and strong merchandising performance.

Total operating revenue was $3.79 million, compared with $3.24 million for the third quarter of 2017, when the market was affected by

hurricanes that struck Texas and Florida in September.

Murphy USA shares dropped $1.07, or 1.31 percent, to close Wednesday at $80.63.

The company has more than 1,400 gasoline and convenience stores in 26 states, mostly in the South and Southwest.

It opened seven new retail stores in the third quarter and three sites reopened after raze-and-rebuild projects.

Construction is underway at 27 locations, including 15 raze-and-rebuild sites.

Total retail gallons sold increased by 3.5 percent to 1.1 billion and volumes on a

same store sales basis improved by 1 percent over the same quarter a year ago. Merchandise contribution dollars grew by 7 percent to $104.5 million on average unit margins of 16.8 percent, which is a new quarterly record, compared with the 16.1 percent average unit margins in the previous year’s third quarter.

“While continuing to strengthen our competitive positioning, we remain committed to long-term shareholders through our disciplined, return-driven capital allocation strategy,” Clyde said.

Murphy USA will hold

a conference call at 10 a.m. today to discuss the thirdquarter results, at (844) 6131037. The conference call access 1728329.