Covestor Ltd Raises Stock Position in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Covestor Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 44.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 294 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after buying an additional 91 shares during the quarter. Covestor Ltd’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $48,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 13.8% in the 3rd quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. now owns 10,630 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,731,000 after purchasing an additional 1,288 shares during the last quarter. Sustainable Insight Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Marathon Petroleum by 333.3% in the third quarter. Sustainable Insight Capital Management LLC now owns 7,800 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,271,000 after buying an additional 6,000 shares during the last quarter. Kerusso Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 6.4% during the third quarter. Kerusso Capital Management LLC now owns 10,734 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,749,000 after buying an additional 648 shares during the period. Demars Financial Group LLC increased its position in Marathon Petroleum by 2.9% during the third quarter. Demars Financial Group LLC now owns 25,411 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $4,140,000 after acquiring an additional 706 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lindbrook Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 6.3% in the third quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 4,484 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $730,000 after acquiring an additional 267 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 76.77% of the company’s stock.

Marathon Petroleum Price Performance

NYSE MPC opened at $158.14 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $50.82 billion, a PE ratio of 12.47, a P/E/G ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 1.38. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $159.44 and its 200-day moving average price is $168.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 1.23. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a 52-week low of $140.98 and a 52-week high of $221.11.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last announced 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.34 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 16.19% and a net margin of 3.15%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $8.14 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 9.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be given a dividend of $0.91 per share. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.30%. This is a positive change from Marathon Petroleum’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 20th. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio is presently 26.15%.

Marathon Petroleum declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase program 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 reacquire up to 10% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co. cut shares of Marathon Petroleum from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, September 9th. Piper Sandler cut their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $168.00 to $145.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $196.00 to $182.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, September 16th. Mizuho reduced their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $198.00 to $193.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Finally, Tudor Pickering lowered shares of Marathon Petroleum from a “strong-buy” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Monday, September 9th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $185.07.

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.