Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) Price Target Raised to $36.00 at Truist Financial

Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) had its price objective hoisted by Truist Financial from $35.00 to $36.00 in a report issued on Friday, Benzinga reports. Truist Financial currently has a buy rating on the oil and gas producer’s stock.

A number of other analysts have also recently weighed in on MRO. Mizuho boosted their price objective on shares of Marathon Oil from $28.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on shares of Marathon Oil from $34.00 to $32.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. Benchmark boosted their price objective on shares of Marathon Oil from $25.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 13th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on shares of Marathon Oil from $39.00 to $36.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Marathon Oil from $26.50 to $30.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Marathon Oil presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $31.74.

Marathon Oil Price Performance

NYSE MRO opened at $29.69 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.97 billion, a PE ratio of 11.60 and a beta of 2.22. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $25.05 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $25.20. Marathon Oil has a 12-month low of $21.63 and a 12-month high of $29.77.

Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 22nd. The oil and gas producer reported $0.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.62 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $1.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.66 billion. Marathon Oil had a net margin of 23.20% and a return on equity of 14.09%. The company’s revenue was down 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.88 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Marathon Oil will post 2.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Oil Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 21st were issued a $0.11 dividend. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.48%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 20th. Marathon Oil’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.19%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marathon Oil

In other Marathon Oil news, CFO Dane E. Whitehead sold 73,233 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.06, for a total value of $1,981,684.98. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 152,008 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,113,336.48. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other news, CFO Dane E. Whitehead sold 73,233 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.06, for a total value of $1,981,684.98. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 152,008 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,113,336.48. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Lee M. Tillman sold 80,647 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.94, for a total transaction of $2,172,630.18. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 596,330 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,065,130.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 281,332 shares of company stock valued at $7,644,903 in the last 90 days. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Marathon Oil

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in MRO. TradeLink Capital LLC acquired a new position in Marathon Oil during the 1st quarter worth about $781,000. D.A. Davidson & CO. acquired a new position in Marathon Oil during the 1st quarter valued at about $209,000. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can lifted its position in 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 purchasing an additional 10,388 shares during the period. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. acquired a new position in Marathon Oil during the 1st quarter valued at about $206,000. Finally, Cibc World Market Inc. lifted its position in 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 purchasing an additional 12,859 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 77.24% of the company’s stock.

Marathon Oil Company Profile

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