Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) Stock Price Up 4.6% – Here’s Why

Shares of Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:MPC) traded up 4.6% during trading on Monday. The stock traded as high as $392.06 and last traded at $389.9070. 2,648,100 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 7% from the average daily volume of 2,478,377 shares. The stock had previously closed at $372.74.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have weighed in on MPC shares. Weiss Ratings upgraded Marathon Petroleum from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 8th. UBS Group set a $510.00 target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a research note on Friday, October 9th. Evercore set a $330.00 target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Zacks Research raised shares of Marathon Petroleum from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $560.00 to $564.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $425.12.

Marathon Petroleum Stock Performance

The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $422.42 and a 200-day simple moving average of $297.48. The company has a current ratio of 1.45, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10. The stock has a market cap of $109.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.84, a P/E/G ratio of 0.10 and a beta of 0.53.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, November 3rd. The oil and gas company reported $26.93 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $25.37 by $1.56. The company had revenue of $56.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $46.60 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 55.82% and a net margin of 8.27%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 57.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.01 EPS. Analysts forecast that Marathon Petroleum Corporation will post 66.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 18th will be given a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 18th. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.75%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Marathon Petroleum news, VP Erin M. Brzezinski sold 570 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $362.79, for a total transaction of $206,790.30. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 1,576 shares in the company, valued at approximately $571,757.04. The trade was a 26.56% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Molly R. Benson sold 17,196 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 17th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at approximately $10,876,862.38. This trade represents a 36.18% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 21,691 shares of company stock worth $7,780,127 over the last three months. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Marathon Petroleum

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Mayflower Financial Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 3.4% during the third quarter. Mayflower Financial Advisors LLC now owns 987 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $390,000 after buying an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in Marathon Petroleum during the third quarter worth $4,487,000. Balanced Wealth Group LLC bought a new position in Marathon Petroleum in the third quarter valued at $219,000. Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A. increased its stake in 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 valued at $1,292,000 after buying an additional 2,382 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Private Wealth Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 361.8% in the 3rd quarter. Private Wealth Asset Management LLC now owns 4,489 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,673,000 after buying an additional 3,517 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.77% of the company’s stock.

Marathon Petroleum Company Profile

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.