ARS Investment Partners LLC Trims Stake in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

ARS Investment Partners LLC cut its stake in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 1.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 121,005 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 1,462 shares during the quarter. Marathon Petroleum comprises about 1.5% of ARS Investment Partners LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest position. ARS Investment Partners LLC’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $16,880,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 0.9% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 7,165 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,268,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. Paragon Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in Marathon Petroleum by 0.6% in the 2nd quarter. Paragon Capital Management Inc. now owns 10,196 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,769,000 after buying an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC now owns 4,285 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $698,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the period. American Trust boosted its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 5.3% during the third quarter. American Trust now owns 1,397 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $228,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the period. Finally, Financial Partners Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 3.3% in the 3rd quarter. Financial Partners Group LLC now owns 2,220 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $362,000 after buying an additional 71 shares during the period. 76.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Barclays decreased their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $168.00 to $159.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Mizuho reduced their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $175.00 to $174.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 16th. Raymond James lifted their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $190.00 to $192.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $172.00 to $171.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $172.00 to $167.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Marathon Petroleum presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $181.20.

Insider Activity at Marathon Petroleum

In related news, Director Jeffrey C. Campbell bought 6,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 4th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $149.61 per share, for a total transaction of $897,660.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 6,090 shares in the company, valued at $911,124.90. This trade represents a 6,666.67 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Marathon Petroleum Stock Performance

Marathon Petroleum stock opened at $152.83 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 1.23 and a quick ratio of 0.76. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a 12 month low of $130.54 and a 12 month high of $221.11. The company has a market cap of $49.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 1.42. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $147.76 and its 200-day moving average is $159.10.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 5th. The oil and gas company reported $1.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.97 by $0.90. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 3.15% and a return on equity of 16.19%. The company had revenue of $35.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.34 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $8.14 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 8.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Marathon Petroleum Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th were given a dividend of $0.91 per share. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.38%. This is a positive change from Marathon Petroleum’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 20th. Marathon Petroleum’s payout ratio is presently 28.84%.

Marathon Petroleum declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Tuesday, November 5th that allows the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the oil and gas company to reacquire up to 10% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

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.