Short Interest in Marine Petroleum Trust (NASDAQ:MARPS) Expands By 116.0%

Marine Petroleum Trust (NASDAQ:MARPS) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in the month of June. As of June 30th, there was short interest totaling 5,649 shares, a growth of 116.0% from the June 15th total of 2,615 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 8,611 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 0.7 days. Approximately 0.3% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Marine Petroleum Trust Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of NASDAQ MARPS traded up $0.04 during trading on Thursday, reaching $4.98. The company had a trading volume of 2,725 shares, compared to its average volume of 45,380. Marine Petroleum Trust has a 12-month low of $4.05 and a 12-month high of $6.49. The stock has a market cap of $9.96 million, a PE ratio of 15.56 and a beta of 0.38. The business’s 50-day moving average is $4.75 and its 200 day moving average is $4.81.

Marine Petroleum Trust (NASDAQ:MARPS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The energy company reported $0.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The company had revenue of $0.23 million for the quarter. Marine Petroleum Trust had a net margin of 65.28% and a return on equity of 66.30%.

Marine Petroleum Trust Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 29th were issued a $0.0965 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 29th. This represents a $0.39 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.7%. Marine Petroleum Trust’s dividend payout ratio is currently 121.88%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MARPS has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded Marine Petroleum Trust to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, March 21st. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Marine Petroleum Trust from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

An institutional investor recently bought a new stake in Marine Petroleum Trust stock. Welch Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Marine Petroleum Trust (NASDAQ:MARPS) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 15,956 shares of the energy company’s stock, valued at approximately $85,000. Welch Group LLC owned 0.80% of Marine Petroleum Trust at the end of the most recent quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 1.76% of the company’s stock.

About Marine Petroleum Trust

Marine Petroleum Trust is a royalty trust that holds overriding royalty interests in petroleum and natural gas production assets on Alaska’s North Slope. Established in 1998, the trust’s primary asset is its net profits interest in the Nikaitchuq Unit, a large oil field operated under state and federal leases. Rather than engaging in exploration or production itself, Marine Petroleum Trust receives income in the form of royalties and net profits from production activities carried out by the unit operator.

The trust’s revenues are generated solely by hydrocarbons extracted from the Nikaitchuq field, with crude oil transported via the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System.