2,000 Shares in Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO) Purchased by MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC

MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 2,000 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock, valued at approximately $48,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Marathon Oil by 6.6% during the third quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 580,242 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $15,521,000 after acquiring an additional 35,998 shares during the last quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. grew its holdings in Marathon Oil by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. now owns 36,395 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $974,000 after buying an additional 1,200 shares in the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its stake in shares of Marathon Oil by 57.4% in the 3rd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 607,336 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $16,246,000 after acquiring an additional 221,388 shares during the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp purchased a new position in shares of Marathon Oil during the 3rd quarter worth $1,899,000. Finally, Waldron Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Marathon Oil during the 3rd quarter valued at about $240,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.24% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Marathon Oil from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Raymond James decreased their target price on Marathon Oil from $35.00 to $32.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. Argus raised Marathon Oil from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $31.00 target price for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 14th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Marathon Oil from $28.00 to $27.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on Marathon Oil from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Marathon Oil presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $32.61.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Lee M. Tillman sold 80,647 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.94, for a total transaction of $2,172,630.18. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 596,330 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,065,130.20. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Lee M. Tillman sold 80,647 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.94, for a total value of $2,172,630.18. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 596,330 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,065,130.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Patrick Wagner sold 39,969 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.89, for a total transaction of $1,074,766.41. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 176,923 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,757,459.47. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 281,332 shares of company stock worth $7,644,903 in the last 90 days. 0.35% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Marathon Oil Stock Performance

NYSE MRO traded up $0.35 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $27.06. 2,795,980 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 9,695,650. Marathon Oil Co. has a 12-month low of $21.81 and a 12-month high of $30.06. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $27.08 and a 200 day moving average of $25.36. The company has a market cap of $15.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.04 and a beta of 2.22. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41.

Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The oil and gas producer reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.52 by $0.03. Marathon Oil had a return on equity of 13.24% and a net margin of 21.83%. The business had revenue of $1.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.56 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.67 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 7.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Marathon Oil Co. will post 2.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Marathon Oil Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.11 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 14th. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.63%. Marathon Oil’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.18%.

Marathon Oil Company Profile

Marathon Oil Corporation, an independent exploration and production company, engages in exploration, production, and marketing of crude oil and condensate, natural gas liquids, and natural gas in the United States and internationally. The company also produces and markets products manufactured from natural gas, such as liquefied natural gas and methanol.