Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO) Holdings Raised by Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC

Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC boosted its stake in Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO) by 54.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 18,893 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after buying an additional 6,668 shares during the period. Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC’s holdings in Marathon Oil were worth $456,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MRO. Smithfield Trust Co grew its stake in Marathon Oil by 367.9% during the 3rd quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 1,020 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 802 shares in the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new position in Marathon Oil during the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Manchester Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Marathon Oil in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Anchor Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Marathon Oil during the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. Finally, Central Bank & Trust Co. purchased a new position in shares of Marathon Oil during the 4th quarter valued at $41,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.24% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on MRO shares. Raymond James dropped their target price on Marathon Oil from $35.00 to $32.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on shares of Marathon Oil from $39.00 to $36.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. StockNews.com raised Marathon Oil from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Mizuho boosted their target price on Marathon Oil from $31.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, May 13th. Finally, Argus raised shares of Marathon Oil from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $31.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $33.14.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marathon Oil

In other news, insider Patrick Wagner sold 39,969 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.89, for a total transaction of $1,074,766.41. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 176,923 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,757,459.47. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other Marathon Oil news, insider Patrick Wagner sold 39,969 shares of Marathon Oil stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.89, for a total transaction of $1,074,766.41. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 176,923 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,757,459.47. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Dane E. Whitehead sold 73,233 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.06, for a total value of $1,981,684.98. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 152,008 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,113,336.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 281,332 shares of company stock worth $7,644,903. Insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

Marathon Oil Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MRO opened at $26.29 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.83 billion, a PE ratio of 10.87 and a beta of 2.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.48. Marathon Oil Co. has a fifty-two week low of $21.81 and a fifty-two week high of $30.06. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $27.53 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $25.27.

Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The oil and gas producer reported $0.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.52 by $0.03. Marathon Oil had a return on equity of 13.24% and a net margin of 21.83%. The firm had revenue of $1.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.56 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.67 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Marathon Oil Co. will post 2.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Oil Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.11 per share. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.67%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 14th. Marathon Oil’s payout ratio is presently 18.18%.

Marathon Oil Company Profile

Marathon Oil Corporation, an independent exploration and production company, engages in exploration, production, and marketing of crude oil and condensate, natural gas liquids, and natural gas in the United States and internationally. The company also produces and markets products manufactured from natural gas, such as liquefied natural gas and methanol.