Murphy USA, the fuel and convenience store chain spun off by Murphy Oil Corp. of El Dorado five years ago, announced profits of $5.3 million for the first quarter of 2019, the company said in filings Monday.
The net income, 16 cents per diluted share of stock, was significantly down from last year’s first-quarter income of $39.3 million, or $1.16 per diluted share, but 2018’s results were buoyed by a $35.3 million after-tax settlement of damages from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
Total operating revenue for the quarter was $3.1 billion, down slightly from $3.2 billion last year.
Monday’s results, listed in the El Dorado company’s report to the Securities & Exchange Commission, were about a penny per share off most analysts’ estimates, but total fuel contribution to the bottom line was up, and total retail gallons sold were also up, along with same store sales, which improved by 1.8%. Merchandise sales provided 3.9% more than they did a year ago, and a company news release said the company had repurchased 177,000 shares of stock during the quarter for $13.3 million, at an average price of $74.86 per share.
In all, President and CEO Andrew Clyde expressed approval. “2019 is off to a strong start as the business performed exceptionally well in the first quarter, despite sharply rising product prices,” he said in a company statement, mentioning “meaningful year-over-year adjusted EBITDA growth to $58.8 million.”
The company opened one new retail station in the quarter, bringing its total store count at quarter’s end to 1,473, including 1,160 Murphy USA sites and 313 under the brand Murphy Express. Sixteen stores, including raze-and-rebuild sites, are under construction, the company said. “We continued to drive traffic to our stores, growing year-over-year same-store volumes for the third straight quarter,” Clyde said. “We are proud to announce the successful completion of the national launch of our loyalty program, Murphy Drive Rewards, which has generated widespread customer enthusiasm with more than 6.4 million participants to date.”
The company will hold a conference call to discuss the results at 10 a.m. Tuesday. The number to call is (844) 613-1037, and the conference number is 9387728. Related materials will be also be available here.
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