Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) Now Covered by StockNews.com

Equities research analysts at StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) in a note issued to investors on Saturday. The firm set a “buy” rating on the oil and gas producer’s stock.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on MRO. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Marathon Oil from $29.00 to $27.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Piper Sandler decreased their price target on shares of Marathon Oil from $37.00 to $34.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 18th. UBS Group cut their price objective on Marathon Oil from $30.00 to $28.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. Barclays decreased their target price on Marathon Oil from $35.00 to $34.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, Mizuho reduced their price objective on Marathon Oil from $34.00 to $32.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $30.94.

Marathon Oil Stock Down 1.3 %

Shares of MRO stock opened at $28.55 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. Marathon Oil has a twelve month low of $21.81 and a twelve month high of $30.06. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $27.57 and a 200 day moving average of $27.62. The stock has a market cap of $15.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.25 and a beta of 2.16.

Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.63 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $1.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.70 billion. Marathon Oil had a net margin of 19.73% and a return on equity of 12.80%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.77 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Marathon Oil will post 2.34 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Michael A. Henderson sold 38,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.21, for a total value of $1,033,980.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 76,828 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,090,489.88. This represents a 33.09 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Dane E. Whitehead sold 52,008 shares of Marathon Oil stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.50, for a total transaction of $1,430,220.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 100,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,750,000. This trade represents a 34.21 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 382,693 shares of company stock valued at $10,964,251 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Marathon Oil

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. HWG Holdings LP acquired a new stake in shares of Marathon Oil during the second quarter worth about $26,000. Founders Capital Management increased its stake in Marathon Oil by 100.0% during the 2nd quarter. Founders Capital Management now owns 1,000 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 500 shares during the period. Highbridge Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Marathon Oil during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Grove Bank & Trust boosted its position in Marathon Oil by 77.4% in the 2nd quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 1,066 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 465 shares during the period. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Marathon Oil in the third quarter worth $36,000. 77.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Marathon Oil

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.