Piper Sandler Issues Positive Forecast for Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) Stock Price

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) had its target price increased by Piper Sandler from $462.00 to $466.00 in a research report released on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an overweight rating on the oil and gas company’s stock.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Marathon Petroleum from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 4th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $453.00 to $458.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $321.00 to $488.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 12th. Raymond James Financial boosted their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $350.00 to $445.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, September 14th. Finally, Evercore set a $330.00 price objective on Marathon Petroleum in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $425.12.

Marathon Petroleum Stock Performance

NYSE MPC opened at $377.08 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $102.67 billion, a PE ratio of 7.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.10 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 1.45. Marathon Petroleum has a 52-week low of $161.93 and a 52-week high of $493.98. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $421.50 and a 200 day simple moving average of $294.36.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, November 3rd. The oil and gas company reported $26.93 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $25.37 by $1.56. The firm had revenue of $56.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $46.60 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 8.27% and a return on equity of 55.82%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 57.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $3.01 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Marathon Petroleum will post 64.38 EPS for the current year.

Marathon Petroleum Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 18th will be given a $1.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 18th. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. Marathon Petroleum’s payout ratio is presently 13.75%.

Insider Activity at Marathon Petroleum

In other Marathon Petroleum news, insider Molly Benson sold 17,196 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $358.57, for a total transaction of $6,165,969.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 30,334 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,876,862.38. This represents a 36.18% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Shawn Lyon sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $350.00, for a total value of $875,000.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 12,619 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,416,650. This represents a 16.54% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 21,691 shares of company stock worth $7,780,127 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Marathon Petroleum

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in Marathon Petroleum in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $6,648,958,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the second quarter worth $1,029,611,000. Bank of America Corp DE grew its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 1.6% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 2,595,084 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $633,668,000 after acquiring an additional 40,124 shares in the last quarter. Amundi increased its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 17.5% during the second quarter. Amundi now owns 2,237,930 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $572,172,000 after acquiring an additional 332,551 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 16.7% during the second quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,508,489 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $385,675,000 after acquiring an additional 215,686 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 76.77% of the company’s stock.

Marathon Petroleum News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Marathon Petroleum this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q3 results showed a sharp recovery. Adjusted earnings reached $26.93 per share, up nearly 795% year over year and above estimates. Strong refining margins, record refinery utilization and throughput, and favorable fuel spreads drove the improvement. The company also reported $11.7 billion in adjusted EBITDA. Article
• Positive Sentiment: $4.2 billion sale is intended to fund a strategic refocus. MPC plans to sell its St. Paul Park and Mandan refineries and related marketing operations to CVR Energy, directing attention toward Gulf Coast investments intended to raise diesel production, crude throughput and premium gasoline exports. Article
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support improved. Piper Sandler raised its price target to $466 from $462 and maintained an Overweight rating. Article
• Neutral Sentiment: Execution will matter. The sale changes MPC’s regional footprint, and the expected benefits depend on completing the transaction and delivering returns from Gulf Coast investments. The company guided to fourth-quarter throughput of about 2.8 million barrels per day. Article
• Negative Sentiment: Recent share weakness contrasts with the positive earnings news. Reports note a sizable prior-session decline, but the articles provided do not identify a single clear catalyst. Investors may be reassessing the deal and future investment returns or taking profits after MPC’s strong run.

Marathon Petroleum Company Profile

Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:MPC) is an American downstream energy company engaged in refining, marketing, and transporting petroleum products. Its operations include converting crude oil into gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, asphalt, propane, and other refined products used by transportation, industrial, and commercial customers.

The company markets fuel under the Marathon brand and supplies products to independent marketers, commercial businesses, and other wholesale customers. Marathon Petroleum also owns a general-partner interest and significant limited-partner interest in MPLX Inc, a midstream company that operates pipelines, storage facilities, terminals, and gathering and processing assets supporting the movement of crude oil and natural gas liquids.

Marathon Petroleum’s refining and midstream activities are concentrated in the United States, with assets serving regions across the Midwest, Gulf Coast, and West Coast.