Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) Shares Acquired by Demars Financial Group LLC

Demars Financial Group LLC increased its stake in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 2.5% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 24,705 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after acquiring an additional 613 shares during the period. Marathon Petroleum makes up about 2.1% of Demars Financial Group LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 12th largest holding. Demars Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $4,286,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. NBC Securities Inc. raised its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 0.9% in the first quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 6,333 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,276,000 after buying an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Guidance Capital Inc. increased its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 1.1% during the first quarter. Guidance Capital Inc. now owns 5,483 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,135,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares in the last quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC increased its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 27.3% during the first quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 275 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $55,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. First Financial Corp IN increased its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 2.5% during the first quarter. First Financial Corp IN now owns 2,429 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $489,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Finally, D Orazio & Associates Inc. raised its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 3.2% during the 1st quarter. D Orazio & Associates Inc. now owns 1,894 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $382,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. 76.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Marathon Petroleum Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of MPC traded down $0.72 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $180.03. The stock had a trading volume of 2,452,592 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,643,195. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.43. The firm has a market cap of $63.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.99, a P/E/G ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 1.40. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $171.27 and its 200 day simple moving average is $180.02. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a 12-month low of $139.32 and a 12-month high of $221.11.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The oil and gas company reported $4.12 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.09 by $1.03. The business had revenue of $38.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $36.66 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 25.87% and a net margin of 5.32%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $5.32 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 13.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 21st will be given a $0.825 dividend. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.83%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 21st. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 16.48%.

Marathon Petroleum announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, April 30th that allows the company to buyback $5.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the oil and gas company to purchase up to 7.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on MPC. StockNews.com downgraded Marathon Petroleum from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, June 14th. Mizuho cut their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $203.00 to $201.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, June 20th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $223.00 to $196.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 12th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Marathon Petroleum in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $200.00 target price for the company. Finally, Tudor Pickering raised Marathon Petroleum to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Marathon Petroleum currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $198.38.

Marathon Petroleum Company 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.