Q1 2024 EPS Estimates for Marathon Oil Co. Lifted by Capital One Financial (NYSE:MRO)

Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO) – Analysts at Capital One Financial raised their Q1 2024 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of Marathon Oil in a research note issued on Wednesday, April 3rd. Capital One Financial analyst P. Johnston now expects that the oil and gas producer will post earnings per share of $0.52 for the quarter, up from their previous forecast of $0.40. The consensus estimate for Marathon Oil’s current full-year earnings is $2.60 per share. Capital One Financial also issued estimates for Marathon Oil’s Q2 2024 earnings at $0.70 EPS, Q3 2024 earnings at $0.78 EPS, Q4 2024 earnings at $0.82 EPS, FY2024 earnings at $2.82 EPS and FY2025 earnings at $3.19 EPS.

MRO has been the subject of a number of other reports. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on Marathon Oil from $26.50 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Marathon Oil from $24.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $33.00 price objective on shares of Marathon Oil in a report on Tuesday, March 5th. Truist Financial raised their price objective on Marathon Oil from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 5th. Finally, Raymond James reduced their price objective on Marathon Oil from $35.00 to $32.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $31.74.

Marathon Oil Price Performance

Shares of MRO stock opened at $29.29 on Monday. Marathon Oil has a 52-week low of $21.63 and a 52-week high of $29.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a current ratio of 0.40. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.44 and a beta of 2.22. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $25.17 and a 200 day moving average price of $25.21.

Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 22nd. The oil and gas producer reported $0.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.62 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $1.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.66 billion. Marathon Oil had a return on equity of 14.09% and a net margin of 23.20%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.88 EPS.

Institutional Trading of Marathon Oil

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MRO. TradeLink Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Marathon Oil during the 1st quarter worth about $781,000. D.A. Davidson & CO. acquired a new stake in Marathon Oil during the 1st quarter worth 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 worth $4,192,000 after acquiring an additional 10,388 shares during the period. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Marathon Oil during the 1st quarter worth 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 worth $4,713,000 after acquiring an additional 12,859 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.24% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Lee M. Tillman sold 80,647 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 596,330 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,065,130.20. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Marathon Oil news, insider Patrick Wagner sold 39,969 shares of Marathon Oil stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.89, for a total transaction of $1,074,766.41. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 176,923 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,757,459.47. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Lee M. Tillman sold 80,647 shares of Marathon Oil stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.94, for a total value of $2,172,630.18. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 596,330 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,065,130.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 281,332 shares of company stock worth $7,644,903. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Marathon Oil Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 21st were issued a $0.11 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 20th. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.50%. Marathon Oil’s dividend payout ratio is presently 17.19%.

About Marathon Oil

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.