Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) Receives $181.27 Consensus Target Price from Brokerages

Shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) have received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the seventeen research firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, six have assigned a hold recommendation, nine have assigned a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $181.27.

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on MPC shares. Tudor Pickering raised shares of Marathon Petroleum from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Raymond James raised their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $190.00 to $192.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Mizuho decreased their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $175.00 to $174.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 16th. Barclays lowered their price target 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. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $182.00 to $183.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th.

Insider Transactions at Marathon Petroleum

In other news, Director Jeffrey C. Campbell bought 6,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 4th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $149.61 per share, with a total value of $897,660.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 6,090 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $911,124.90. This represents a 6,666.67 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Marathon Petroleum by 1.6% during the third quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC now owns 4,285 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $698,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. OLD Second National Bank of Aurora raised its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 7.2% in the fourth quarter. OLD Second National Bank of Aurora now owns 994 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $139,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the period. Nixon Peabody Trust Co. lifted its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. Nixon Peabody Trust Co. now owns 2,068 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $288,000 after buying an additional 68 shares in the last quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC boosted its holdings in Marathon Petroleum by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC now owns 4,271 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $596,000 after buying an additional 69 shares during the period. Finally, American Trust grew its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 5.3% in the 3rd quarter. American Trust now owns 1,397 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $228,000 after buying an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.77% of the company’s stock.

Marathon Petroleum Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MPC opened at $150.07 on Monday. Marathon Petroleum has a twelve month low of $130.54 and a twelve month high of $221.11. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $148.15 and its 200-day moving average is $155.46. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94. The firm has a market capitalization of $48.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.11, a PEG ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 1.41.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The oil and gas company reported $0.77 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.06 by $0.71. The firm had revenue of $33.47 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $31.94 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 2.45% and a return on equity of 12.07%. The business’s revenue was down 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.98 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Marathon Petroleum will post 8.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum declared that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Tuesday, November 5th that authorizes the company to buyback $5.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the oil and gas company to repurchase up to 10% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Marathon Petroleum Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 19th will be given a $0.91 dividend. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.43%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 19th. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio is 36.66%.

About Marathon Petroleum

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.