Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO) Stake Decreased by Cambria Investment Management L.P.

Cambria Investment Management L.P. trimmed its position in Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO) by 3.1% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 275,032 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 8,872 shares during the period. Cambria Investment Management L.P.’s holdings in Marathon Oil were worth $6,331,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MRO. TradeLink Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Marathon Oil in the first quarter worth approximately $781,000. D.A. Davidson & CO. acquired a new stake in shares of Marathon Oil during the 1st quarter valued at $209,000. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can lifted its position in shares of Marathon Oil by 6.9% during the 1st quarter. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can now owns 160,065 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $4,192,000 after acquiring an additional 10,388 shares during the last quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Marathon Oil during the 1st quarter valued at $206,000. Finally, Cibc World Market Inc. lifted its position in shares of Marathon Oil by 7.4% during the 1st quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 187,679 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $4,713,000 after acquiring an additional 12,859 shares during the last quarter. 76.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently commented on MRO. Truist Financial cut their price objective on Marathon Oil from $39.00 to $35.00 in a research report on Monday, July 24th. Raymond James boosted their target price on shares of Marathon Oil from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 14th. Benchmark cut their target price on shares of Marathon Oil from $32.00 to $28.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Marathon Oil from $37.00 to $36.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 11th. Finally, Mizuho boosted their target price on shares of Marathon Oil from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, September 18th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Marathon Oil has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $33.09.

Marathon Oil Trading Down 0.7 %

Marathon Oil stock opened at $25.41 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.64 and a quick ratio of 0.58. Marathon Oil Co. has a one year low of $20.57 and a one year high of $32.61. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $26.72 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $25.13. The company has a market capitalization of $14.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.41, a PEG ratio of 0.47 and a beta of 2.30.

Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 1st. The oil and gas producer reported $0.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.69 by $0.08. Marathon Oil had a net margin of 24.96% and a return on equity of 15.41%. The company had revenue of $1.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.76 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.24 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 19.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Marathon Oil Co. will post 2.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Oil Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 11th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.11 per share. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.73%. This is a boost from Marathon Oil’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 14th. Marathon Oil’s dividend payout ratio is 14.81%.

Marathon Oil announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Wednesday, November 1st that permits the company to buyback $2.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the oil and gas producer to reacquire up to 14.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marathon Oil

In related news, insider Patrick Wagner sold 34,756 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.88, for a total value of $899,485.28. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 167,533 shares in the company, valued at $4,335,754.04. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Marathon Oil news, CFO Dane E. Whitehead sold 53,403 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.05, for a total transaction of $1,444,551.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 156,481 shares in the company, valued at $4,232,811.05. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Patrick Wagner sold 34,756 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.88, for a total transaction of $899,485.28. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 167,533 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,335,754.04. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 446,226 shares of company stock worth $12,067,164 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.42% of the company’s stock.

Marathon Oil Profile

Marathon Oil Corporation operates as an independent exploration and production company in the United States and internationally. The company engages in the exploration, production, and marketing of crude oil and condensate, natural gas liquids, and natural gas; and the production and marketing of products manufactured from natural gas, such as liquefied natural gas and methanol.