Hartford Investment Management Co. Sells 1,479 Shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Hartford Investment Management Co. lessened its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 6.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 21,089 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 1,479 shares during the quarter. Hartford Investment Management Co.’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $3,436,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brookstone Capital Management boosted its holdings in Marathon Petroleum by 30.5% in the first quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 21,150 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $4,262,000 after purchasing an additional 4,947 shares in the last quarter. Sovereign Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the 1st quarter worth about $284,000. GoalVest Advisory LLC increased its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 16.9% during the 1st quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 1,066 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $215,000 after acquiring an additional 154 shares during the last quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $239,000. Finally, Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Marathon Petroleum by 15.6% in the 1st quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC now owns 4,252 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $857,000 after purchasing an additional 573 shares during the last quarter. 76.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on MPC shares. Scotiabank dropped their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $191.00 to $170.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Morgan Stanley lowered 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. Citigroup cut their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $172.00 to $167.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Bank of America started coverage on Marathon Petroleum in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $174.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $196.00 to $183.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $187.00.

Marathon Petroleum Price Performance

Shares of MPC stock opened at $153.76 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $54.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.68, a P/E/G ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a current ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a 12 month low of $140.98 and a 12 month high of $221.11. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $166.48 and a two-hundred day moving average of $174.39.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The oil and gas company reported $4.12 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.09 by $1.03. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 24.05% and a net margin of 4.79%. The firm had revenue of $38.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $36.66 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $5.32 earnings per share. Marathon Petroleum’s quarterly revenue was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 10.22 EPS for the current year.

Marathon Petroleum Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 21st were paid a $0.825 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 21st. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.15%. Marathon Petroleum’s payout ratio is currently 16.48%.

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.