Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) Shares Sold by Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC

Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC lowered its position in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 12.9% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 1,950 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 290 shares during the quarter. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $289,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

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

Marathon Petroleum Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE MPC traded down $0.40 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $182.55. 1,868,555 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,394,157. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a twelve month low of $104.32 and a twelve month high of $221.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $64.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.12, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.55. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $194.18 and a 200 day simple moving average of $168.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.43.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 30th. The oil and gas company reported $2.78 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.53 by $0.25. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 5.32% and a return on equity of 25.87%. The firm had revenue of $32.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $32.07 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $6.09 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 19.96 earnings per share for the current year.

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 issued a dividend of $0.825 per share. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.81%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 15th. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 16.48%.

Marathon Petroleum announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Tuesday, April 30th that authorizes the company to buyback $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the oil and gas company to buy up to 7.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Piper Sandler increased their price objective 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. StockNews.com upgraded Marathon Petroleum from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $172.00 to $186.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, April 1st. Raymond James lifted their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, Bank of America increased their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $185.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, March 15th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Marathon Petroleum currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $193.62.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marathon Petroleum

In other news, Director Kim K.W. Rucker sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.35, for a total value of $170,350.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 23,446 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,994,026.10. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Marathon Petroleum

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.