BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S Sells 3,807 Shares of Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO)

BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S lowered its position in shares of Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO) by 8.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 38,796 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 3,807 shares during the quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S’s holdings in Marathon Oil were worth $937,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in Marathon Oil by 51.4% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 27,988,152 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $748,683,000 after purchasing an additional 9,504,754 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley increased its holdings in Marathon Oil by 22.6% in the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 11,797,521 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $315,584,000 after purchasing an additional 2,176,062 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in Marathon Oil by 7.3% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 8,186,365 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $197,801,000 after purchasing an additional 556,566 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Marathon Oil by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,136,561 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $124,099,000 after acquiring an additional 18,125 shares during the period. Finally, LSV Asset Management grew its stake in Marathon Oil by 7.1% in the fourth quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 5,024,800 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $121,399,000 after acquiring an additional 332,200 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 77.24% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Mizuho boosted their target price on Marathon Oil from $31.00 to $33.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, May 13th. Argus raised Marathon Oil from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $31.00 target price for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Marathon Oil from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Truist Financial decreased their target price on Marathon Oil from $36.00 to $35.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 6th. Finally, Scotiabank boosted their target price on Marathon Oil from $35.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Marathon Oil currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $33.14.

Insider Transactions at Marathon Oil

In other news, insider Patrick Wagner sold 39,969 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the insider now owns 176,923 shares in the company, valued at $4,757,459.47. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Lee M. Tillman sold 80,647 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 596,330 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,065,130.20. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Patrick Wagner sold 39,969 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.89, for a total value of $1,074,766.41. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 176,923 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,757,459.47. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 281,332 shares of company stock worth $7,644,903. Company insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

Marathon Oil Price Performance

NYSE:MRO opened at $25.89 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $27.53 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $25.28. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.70 and a beta of 2.22. Marathon Oil Co. has a 12-month low of $21.81 and a 12-month high of $30.06.

Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The oil and gas producer reported $0.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.52 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $1.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.56 billion. Marathon Oil had a return on equity of 13.24% and a net margin of 21.83%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.67 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Marathon Oil Co. will post 2.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Marathon Oil Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.11 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 14th. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.70%. Marathon Oil’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 18.18%.

Marathon Oil 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.