Asset Planning Inc Purchases Shares of 200 Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Asset Planning Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 200 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock, valued at approximately $28,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 342.1% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,593,729 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $911,274,000 after acquiring an additional 4,328,470 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 19,153.8% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,311,182 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $213,605,000 after acquiring an additional 1,304,372 shares during the period. ING Groep NV bought a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the third quarter valued at approximately $114,107,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 22.3% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,552,655 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $495,595,000 after acquiring an additional 647,045 shares during the period. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI boosted its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 212.9% in the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 846,756 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $137,945,000 after acquiring an additional 576,119 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.77% of the company’s stock.

Marathon Petroleum Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MPC opened at $156.11 on Friday. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a twelve month low of $130.54 and a twelve month high of $221.11. The firm has a market cap of $50.17 billion, a PE ratio of 15.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 1.41. 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 business has a fifty day moving average of $145.89 and a 200-day moving average of $157.19.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The oil and gas company reported $0.77 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.06 by $0.71. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 12.07% and a net margin of 2.45%. The company had revenue of $33.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.94 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.98 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 8.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 19th will be given a $0.91 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 19th. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.33%. Marathon Petroleum’s payout ratio is 36.66%.

Marathon Petroleum announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Tuesday, November 5th that permits the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the oil and gas company to repurchase up to 10% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MPC has been the subject of several research reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $182.00 to $183.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Mizuho reduced their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $175.00 to $174.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Barclays reduced their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $168.00 to $159.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 11th. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $170.00 target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Tudor Pickering raised Marathon Petroleum from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Marathon Petroleum has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $181.27.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Jeffrey C. Campbell acquired 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 4th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $149.61 per share, for a total transaction of $897,660.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 6,090 shares in the company, valued at $911,124.90. This trade represents a 6,666.67 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

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.