Bowman & Co S.C. Sells 4,237 Shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Bowman & Co S.C. reduced its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 22.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 14,698 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 4,237 shares during the quarter. Marathon Petroleum accounts for approximately 1.1% of Bowman & Co S.C.’s portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest holding. Bowman & Co S.C.’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $2,050,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Seven Eight Capital LP bought a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the second quarter worth about $1,023,000. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in Marathon Petroleum by 17.0% during the 2nd quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 5,035 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $874,000 after acquiring an additional 733 shares in the last quarter. Ieq Capital LLC boosted its position in Marathon Petroleum by 11.0% during the 2nd quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 20,549 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $3,565,000 after acquiring an additional 2,039 shares in the last quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. boosted its position in Marathon Petroleum by 3.7% during the 2nd quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 7,110 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,234,000 after acquiring an additional 256 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AE Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Marathon Petroleum by 184.9% during the 2nd quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 27,206 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $4,720,000 after acquiring an additional 17,657 shares in the last quarter. 76.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Marathon Petroleum Price Performance

Shares of MPC opened at $152.83 on Friday. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a fifty-two week low of $130.54 and a fifty-two week high of $221.11. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $147.76 and its 200 day moving average price is $159.31. The company has a market cap of $49.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.11, a PEG ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The oil and gas company reported $1.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.97 by $0.90. The business had revenue of $35.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.34 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 3.15% and a return on equity of 16.19%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $8.14 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th were paid a dividend of $0.91 per share. This is a boost from Marathon Petroleum’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.38%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 20th. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.84%.

Marathon Petroleum announced that its board has approved a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, November 5th that permits the company to buyback $5.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the oil and gas company to purchase up to 10% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Citigroup dropped their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $172.00 to $167.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Barclays dropped their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $168.00 to $159.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Scotiabank dropped their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $191.00 to $170.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Bank of America started coverage on Marathon Petroleum in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $174.00 price target on the stock. Finally, TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating and issued a $170.00 price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Marathon Petroleum presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $181.20.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Jeffrey C. Campbell purchased 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 4th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $149.61 per share, for a total transaction of $897,660.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 6,090 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $911,124.90. The trade was a 6,666.67 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.21% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Marathon Petroleum Profile

Marathon Petroleum Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an integrated downstream energy company primarily in the United States. The company operates through Refining & Marketing, and Midstream segments. The Refining & Marketing segment refines crude oil and other feedstocks at its refineries in the Gulf Coast, Mid-Continent, and West Coast regions of the United States; and purchases refined products and ethanol for resale and distributes refined products, including renewable diesel, through transportation, storage, distribution, and marketing services.