E&G Advisors LP Increases Stock Holdings in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

E&G Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 5.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,259 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the quarter. E&G Advisors LP’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $455,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Scarborough Advisors LLC grew its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 10.7% during the 4th quarter. Scarborough Advisors LLC now owns 2,174 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $323,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares in the last quarter. Global Assets Advisory LLC acquired a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the 1st quarter worth approximately $36,823,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 8.9% in the 4th quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 1,174 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $174,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Canoe Financial LP acquired a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,604,000. Finally, Allworth Financial LP grew its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 10,899 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,617,000 after acquiring an additional 340 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.77% of the company’s stock.

Marathon Petroleum Stock Performance

Marathon Petroleum stock traded up $0.85 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $174.99. 1,344,583 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,708,869. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $177.73 and a 200 day moving average price of $176.31. 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 $61.65 billion, a PE ratio of 8.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.40. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a one year low of $112.82 and a one year high of $221.11.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 30th. The oil and gas company reported $2.78 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.53 by $0.25. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 25.87% and a net margin of 5.32%. The company had revenue of $32.71 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $32.07 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $6.09 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 17.85 EPS for the current year.

Marathon Petroleum announced that its board has approved a share buyback program 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 reacquire up to 7.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Marathon Petroleum Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 16th were paid a $0.825 dividend. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.89%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 15th. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio is presently 16.48%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. 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. Piper Sandler decreased their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $190.00 to $168.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, June 14th. Raymond James reduced their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $235.00 to $230.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $227.00 to $223.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, June 6th. Finally, Tudor Pickering upgraded Marathon Petroleum to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $191.31.

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.