Canoe Financial LP Acquires New Holdings in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Canoe Financial LP purchased a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 226,500 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock, valued at approximately $33,604,000. Canoe Financial LP owned about 0.06% of Marathon Petroleum as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Donoghue Forlines LLC raised its holdings in Marathon Petroleum by 40.1% in the 4th quarter. Donoghue Forlines LLC now owns 13,022 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,932,000 after acquiring an additional 3,725 shares during the period. Versor Investments LP bought a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the fourth quarter worth about $2,014,000. Calton & Associates Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the 4th quarter worth about $325,000. Principal Securities Inc. bought a new stake in Marathon Petroleum during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $659,000. Finally, Summa Corp. bought a new position in Marathon Petroleum in the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,225,000. Institutional investors own 76.77% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on MPC shares. TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $168.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Citigroup started coverage on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. Bank of America lifted their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $185.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, March 15th. StockNews.com cut Marathon Petroleum from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Raymond James boosted their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Marathon Petroleum has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $191.62.

Marathon Petroleum Stock Down 1.8 %

Shares of NYSE MPC opened at $179.56 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85. The company has a market cap of $63.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.55. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a 12-month low of $104.32 and a 12-month high of $221.11. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $195.26 and its 200 day simple moving average is $169.12.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 30th. The oil and gas company reported $2.78 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.53 by $0.25. The firm had revenue of $32.71 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $32.07 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 5.32% and a return on equity of 25.87%. Marathon Petroleum’s revenue was down 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $6.09 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 19.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 16th will be given a dividend of $0.825 per share. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.84%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 15th. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio is 16.48%.

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

Insider Activity at Marathon Petroleum

In other Marathon Petroleum news, Director Kim K.W. Rucker sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The shares were 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 owns 23,446 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,994,026.10. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by company 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.