Mizuho Raises Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) Price Target to $224.00

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) had its price objective raised by research analysts at Mizuho from $205.00 to $224.00 in a research report issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “neutral” rating on the oil and gas company’s stock. Mizuho’s price target suggests a potential downside of 4.04% from the stock’s current price.

Several other brokerages have also recently issued reports on MPC. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $213.00 to $217.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $182.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $231.00 to $184.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Scotiabank reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $174.00 price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Finally, Zacks Research cut shares of Marathon Petroleum from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $205.44.

Marathon Petroleum Trading Up 2.0%

NYSE MPC traded up $4.50 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $233.44. The stock had a trading volume of 835,341 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,500,218. The company has a quick ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.27. The company has a market capitalization of $68.80 billion, a PE ratio of 17.48, a PEG ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 0.69. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $194.20 and a 200 day moving average price of $188.67. Marathon Petroleum has a twelve month low of $115.10 and a twelve month high of $236.10.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The oil and gas company reported $4.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.73 by $0.34. The business had revenue of $32.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $30.89 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 2.99% and a return on equity of 13.90%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.77 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Marathon Petroleum will post 8.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Ricky D. Hessling sold 1,810 shares of Marathon Petroleum stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $224.78, for a total value of $406,851.80. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 10,188 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,290,058.64. The trade was a 15.09% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of MPC. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV lifted its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 2,050 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $333,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. IFG Advisory LLC increased its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. IFG Advisory LLC now owns 3,429 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $558,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Associated Banc Corp raised its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. Associated Banc Corp now owns 2,475 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $477,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Eagle Bluffs Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Eagle Bluffs Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,357 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $709,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Auxano Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Auxano Advisors LLC now owns 2,630 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $428,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. 76.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Marathon Petroleum

Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE: MPC) is a U.S.-based downstream energy company engaged principally in the refining, marketing, supply and transportation of petroleum products. The company was formed through a spin-off from Marathon Oil in 2011 and operates an integrated system of refining and logistics assets that support the production and distribution of transportation fuels and other refined petroleum products.

Marathon Petroleum’s operations include refining crude oil into gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, asphalt and other specialty products, as well as managing the distribution and storage infrastructure needed to move those products to market.