Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) Coverage Initiated by Analysts at StockNews.com

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

A number of other analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Marathon Oil from $29.00 to $27.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Scotiabank upped their price target on shares of Marathon Oil from $27.61 to $28.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Truist Financial lowered their price target on shares of Marathon Oil from $35.00 to $27.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Marathon Oil from $29.00 to $28.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Marathon Oil from $33.00 to $30.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 12th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Marathon Oil has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $31.12.

Marathon Oil Price Performance

Shares of MRO opened at $28.85 on Friday. Marathon Oil has a twelve month low of $21.81 and a twelve month high of $30.06. The company has a quick ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $27.29 and a 200 day moving average of $27.54. The company has a market capitalization of $16.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.38 and a beta of 2.16.

Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.63 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $1.79 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.77 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Marathon Oil will post 2.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marathon Oil

In other news, insider Dane E. Whitehead sold 52,008 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.50, for a total transaction of $1,430,220.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 100,000 shares in the company, valued at $2,750,000. The trade was a 34.21 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Michael A. Henderson sold 38,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 76,828 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,090,489.88. The trade was a 33.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Marathon Oil

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Gradient Investments LLC grew its holdings in shares of Marathon Oil by 1.9% during the second quarter. Gradient Investments LLC now owns 22,829 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $655,000 after buying an additional 428 shares in the last quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Marathon Oil by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC now owns 24,084 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $641,000 after acquiring an additional 454 shares in the last quarter. Grove Bank & Trust raised its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 465 shares in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its position in Marathon Oil by 6.5% during the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 7,897 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $210,000 after acquiring an additional 483 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Catalina Capital Group LLC grew its position in Marathon Oil by 3.1% during the 3rd quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC now owns 16,533 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $440,000 after acquiring an additional 495 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.24% of the company’s stock.

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.