Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) Stake Raised by Rafferty Asset Management LLC

Rafferty Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 1.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 116,666 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,132 shares during the period. Rafferty Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $16,275,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in Marathon Petroleum in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Asset Planning Inc purchased a new stake in Marathon Petroleum in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new position in Marathon Petroleum in the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. increased its position in Marathon Petroleum by 762.9% in the 4th quarter. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 302 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 267 shares during the last quarter. Finally, OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in Marathon Petroleum in the 4th quarter worth about $44,000. 76.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Marathon Petroleum Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MPC opened at $165.47 on Friday. 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 $50.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.66, a P/E/G ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 0.87. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $139.17 and its 200-day simple moving average is $145.43. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a 52 week low of $115.10 and a 52 week high of $183.31.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The oil and gas company reported ($0.24) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.40) by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $31.85 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $28.91 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 12.07% and a net margin of 2.45%. The company’s revenue was down 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.58 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 8.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 21st will be issued a $0.91 dividend. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.20%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 21st. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 51.20%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marathon Petroleum

In other Marathon Petroleum news, insider Ricky D. Hessling bought 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $134.72 per share, with a total value of $269,440.00. Following the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 12,162 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,638,464.64. This represents a 19.68% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Evan Bayh bought 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $133.70 per share, for a total transaction of $133,700.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 69,305 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,266,078.50. The trade was a 1.46% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Scotiabank dropped their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $169.00 to $147.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Piper Sandler dropped their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $160.00 to $156.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Raymond James dropped their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $193.00 to $183.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Mizuho upped their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $168.00 to $184.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $141.00 to $159.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $175.29.

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.