Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. Purchases Shares of 8,147 Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. acquired a new position in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 8,147 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,327,000.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Gladius Capital Management LP acquired a new position in Marathon Petroleum during the third quarter worth $26,000. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 88.9% during the 3rd quarter. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC now owns 170 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Marathon Petroleum in the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,000. TruNorth Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Marathon Petroleum during the second quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the second quarter worth about $35,000. 76.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on MPC shares. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $196.00 to $182.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $196.00 to $183.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Barclays decreased their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $168.00 to $159.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 11th. Piper Sandler cut their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $168.00 to $145.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, September 20th. Finally, Scotiabank decreased their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $191.00 to $170.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Marathon Petroleum currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $185.07.

Marathon Petroleum Stock Performance

Shares of MPC stock opened at $157.13 on Wednesday. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a 1 year low of $140.98 and a 1 year high of $221.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 1.23. The firm has a market cap of $50.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.45, a PEG ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 1.38. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $158.55 and its two-hundred day moving average is $167.11.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The oil and gas company reported $1.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.90. The firm had revenue of $35.37 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.34 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 16.19% and a net margin of 3.15%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $8.14 EPS. Analysts predict that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 9.59 earnings per share for the current year.

Marathon Petroleum announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, November 5th that allows the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the oil and gas company to repurchase up to 10% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Marathon Petroleum Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.91 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.32%. This is a boost from Marathon Petroleum’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.84%.

Marathon Petroleum 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.