NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC Sells 526 Shares of Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO)

NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC decreased its position in shares of Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO) by 2.3% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 22,490 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 526 shares during the quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC’s holdings in Marathon Oil were worth $599,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in Marathon Oil by 28.2% in the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 44,381 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $1,175,000 after purchasing an additional 9,752 shares during the last quarter. Spirit of America Management Corp NY raised its holdings in shares of Marathon Oil by 1.0% in the third quarter. Spirit of America Management Corp NY now owns 97,273 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $2,590,000 after buying an additional 1,000 shares during the period. Impact Partnership Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Marathon Oil during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $296,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Marathon Oil by 3,253.2% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 179,362 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $4,776,000 after acquiring an additional 174,013 shares during the period. Finally, McAdam LLC grew its position in Marathon Oil by 6.8% in the 3rd quarter. McAdam LLC now owns 7,995 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $213,000 after acquiring an additional 508 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.24% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Dane E. Whitehead sold 52,008 shares of Marathon Oil stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.50, for a total value of $1,430,220.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 100,000 shares in the company, valued at $2,750,000. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, VP Michael A. Henderson sold 38,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.21, for a total value of $1,033,980.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 76,828 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,090,489.88. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Dane E. Whitehead sold 52,008 shares of Marathon Oil stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.50, for a total value of $1,430,220.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 100,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,750,000. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MRO has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Scotiabank lifted their target price on Marathon Oil from $27.61 to $28.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Marathon Oil from $29.00 to $27.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Marathon Oil in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Citigroup dropped their price objective on Marathon Oil from $29.00 to $28.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price objective on Marathon Oil from $35.00 to $34.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Nine 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $31.12.

Marathon Oil Stock Up 0.2 %

NYSE:MRO opened at $26.46 on Monday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $27.42 and its 200-day simple moving average is $27.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a current ratio of 0.57. Marathon Oil Co. has a fifty-two week low of $21.81 and a fifty-two week high of $30.06. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.93 and a beta of 2.16.

Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.69 by ($0.06). Marathon Oil had a return on equity of 13.81% and a net margin of 22.12%. The firm had revenue of $1.71 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.69 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.48 earnings per share. Marathon Oil’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Marathon Oil Co. will post 2.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Oil Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 21st were paid a $0.11 dividend. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.66%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 21st. Marathon Oil’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.