Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) Shares Climb 3.4% – Time to Buy?

Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:MPC)’s stock price shot up 3.4% on Wednesday. The company traded as high as $402.99 and last traded at $402.7270. Approximately 1,762,002 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 29% from the average session volume of 2,473,885 shares. The stock had previously closed at $389.55.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on MPC. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $321.00 to $488.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 12th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Marathon Petroleum from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $433.00 price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a research report on Sunday, October 11th. Zacks Research upgraded Marathon Petroleum from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 4th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $318.00 to $518.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $425.12.

Marathon Petroleum Price Performance

The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $422.42 and its 200-day simple moving average is $297.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $109.65 billion, a PE ratio of 13.84, a PEG ratio of 0.10 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a quick ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 3rd. The oil and gas company reported $26.93 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $25.37 by $1.56. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 8.27% and a return on equity of 55.82%. The firm had revenue of $56.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $46.60 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.01 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 57.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Marathon Petroleum Corporation will post 66.31 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 Thursday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 18th will be issued a $1.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 18th. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.75%.

Insider Transactions at Marathon Petroleum

In other Marathon Petroleum news, VP Erin M. Brzezinski sold 570 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $362.79, for a total value of $206,790.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 1,576 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $571,757.04. The trade was a 26.56% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Molly R. Benson sold 17,196 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $358.57, for a total value of $6,165,969.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 30,334 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,876,862.38. This trade represents a 36.18% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 21,691 shares of company stock worth $7,780,127 over the last quarter. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Mayflower Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in Marathon Petroleum by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. Mayflower Financial Advisors LLC now owns 987 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $390,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares during the period. Advisors Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the 3rd quarter valued at $4,487,000. Balanced Wealth Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the 3rd quarter worth $219,000. Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A. boosted its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 269.2% in the 3rd quarter. Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A. now owns 3,267 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,292,000 after buying an additional 2,382 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Private Wealth Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 361.8% in the third quarter. Private Wealth Asset Management LLC now owns 4,489 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,673,000 after acquiring an additional 3,517 shares during the period. 76.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Marathon Petroleum

Marathon Petroleum Corporation is an integrated downstream energy company focused on refining, marketing, and transporting petroleum products. Its refineries produce fuels and other products, including gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, asphalt, and petrochemical feedstocks. The company sells transportation fuels and related products through a network of branded locations and other wholesale and commercial channels, primarily in the United States. Its midstream operations, conducted largely through its affiliated partnership MPLX, include gathering, processing, and transporting natural gas and natural gas liquids, as well as storing and transporting crude oil and refined products.