Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) Shares Acquired by Private Advisor Group LLC

Private Advisor Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 5.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 51,695 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,583 shares during the quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $7,670,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA acquired a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC purchased a new stake in Marathon Petroleum during the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. Bare Financial Services Inc purchased a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Pittenger & Anderson Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the 4th quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners acquired a new position in Marathon Petroleum in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.77% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Kim K.W. Rucker sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.35, for a total transaction of $170,350.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 23,446 shares in the company, valued at $3,994,026.10. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.21% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Marathon Petroleum Price Performance

MPC traded up $0.20 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $181.12. 102,722 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,733,298. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $194.58 and its 200 day moving average price is $168.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $63.81 billion, a PE ratio of 9.04, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.55. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a 1-year low of $104.32 and a 1-year high of $221.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 1.43 and a quick ratio of 0.99.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The oil and gas company reported $2.78 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.53 by $0.25. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 25.87% and a net margin of 5.32%. The firm had revenue of $32.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $32.07 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $6.09 EPS. Marathon Petroleum’s quarterly revenue was down 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 19.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, April 30th that authorizes the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the oil and gas company to purchase up to 7.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Marathon Petroleum Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 16th will be given a dividend of $0.825 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 15th. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.82%. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 16.48%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on MPC shares. Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $159.00 to $204.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, April 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $172.00 to $186.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, April 1st. Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Marathon Petroleum from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $175.00 to $211.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 22nd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Marathon Petroleum has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $191.62.

Marathon Petroleum Company 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.