Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) have been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the fourteen research firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, eight have assigned a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $190.77.

MPC has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Scotiabank raised their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $175.00 to $207.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $204.00 to $190.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $172.00 to $186.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, April 1st. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $221.00 to $195.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 6th. Finally, Raymond James increased their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st.

Marathon Petroleum Trading Up 0.7 %

MPC opened at $177.80 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $194.16 and its 200 day moving average price is $170.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.43. The stock has a market capitalization of $62.64 billion, a PE ratio of 8.88, a P/E/G ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 1.55. Marathon Petroleum has a one year low of $104.32 and a one year high of $221.11.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The oil and gas company reported $2.78 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.53 by $0.25. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 5.32% and a return on equity of 25.87%. The business had revenue of $32.71 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $32.07 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $6.09 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Marathon Petroleum will post 19.88 EPS for the current year.

Marathon Petroleum declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, April 30th that permits the company to buyback $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the oil and gas company to reacquire up to 7.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Marathon Petroleum Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 16th will be paid a $0.825 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 15th. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.86%. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio is currently 16.48%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Kim K.W. Rucker sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.35, for a total transaction of $170,350.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 23,446 shares in the company, valued at $3,994,026.10. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Marathon Petroleum

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of MPC. Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA purchased a new position in Marathon Petroleum during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Marathon Petroleum by 400.0% during the first quarter. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC now owns 125 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Crewe Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Marathon Petroleum in the first quarter worth $29,000. ICA Group Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Marathon Petroleum in the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Vima LLC acquired a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. 76.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Marathon Petroleum Company 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.