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Murphy USA (NYSE: MUSA) earned $11.27 per diluted share in the second quarter, against $7.36 in the year-ago period, making the case that a network of gas stations and convenience stores can generate serious earnings power when fuel economics cooperate.
The complication is inside the company's own numbers.
Management's full-year guidance assumes second-half fuel margins averaging 35 cents per gallon, a step down from the 37.9 cents the first half produced, and expenses have been climbing on a path that does not depend on whether margins hold.
What drove the quarter Total fuel contribution reached 40.6 cents per gallon in Q2, up from 32.0 cents a year earlier. The retail fuel margin specifically rose 20.2% to 35.1 cents per gallon.
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