Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund Sells 1,383 Shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund decreased its position in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 10.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 12,144 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 1,383 shares during the quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $2,447,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Scarborough Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 10.7% in the fourth 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 during the last quarter. Global Assets Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in Marathon Petroleum during the first quarter worth approximately $36,823,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its position in Marathon Petroleum by 8.9% during the fourth quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 1,174 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $174,000 after buying an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Canoe Financial LP acquired a new stake in Marathon Petroleum during the fourth quarter worth approximately $33,604,000. Finally, Fidelis Capital Partners LLC grew its position in Marathon Petroleum by 3.2% during the first quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,050 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $615,000 after buying an additional 94 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.77% of the company’s stock.

Marathon Petroleum Trading Up 0.7 %

NYSE:MPC traded up $1.15 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $172.65. 1,789,399 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,332,050. The stock has a market capitalization of $60.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.08 and a beta of 1.40. The company has a current ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a one year low of $128.07 and a one year high of $221.11. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $171.80 and a 200 day simple moving average of $178.08.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The oil and gas company reported $2.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.53 by $0.25. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 25.87% and a net margin of 5.32%. The business had revenue of $32.71 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $32.07 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $6.09 EPS. Marathon Petroleum’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 13.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, April 30th that authorizes the company to buyback $5.00 billion in 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 plans are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on MPC shares. Scotiabank reduced their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $207.00 to $191.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 12th. Tudor Pickering raised Marathon Petroleum to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. Raymond James reduced their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $235.00 to $230.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $222.00 to $231.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 15th. Finally, Barclays cut their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $195.00 to $185.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 1st. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $193.64.

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.