Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) Stock Rating Reaffirmed by Benchmark

Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO)‘s stock had its “buy” rating reiterated by investment analysts at Benchmark in a report issued on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $32.00 price objective on the oil and gas producer’s stock. Benchmark’s price target suggests a potential upside of 16.26% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Marathon Oil in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $35.00 price objective for the company. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on Marathon Oil from $39.00 to $36.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Truist Financial raised their price target on Marathon Oil from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Marathon Oil from $28.00 to $27.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, Susquehanna restated a “positive” rating and issued a $33.00 target price on shares of Marathon Oil in a report on Monday. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Marathon Oil currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $32.66.

Marathon Oil Stock Performance

Shares of MRO stock opened at $27.53 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $26.55 and a 200-day simple moving average of $25.42. The company has a market cap of $15.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.75 and a beta of 2.22. The company has a current ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. Marathon Oil has a 12-month low of $21.63 and a 12-month high of $30.06.

Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 22nd. The oil and gas producer reported $0.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.62 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $1.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.66 billion. Marathon Oil had a return on equity of 14.09% and a net margin of 23.20%. Marathon Oil’s revenue was down 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.88 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Marathon Oil will post 2.76 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marathon Oil

In other news, VP Michael A. Henderson sold 51,389 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.59, for a total value of $1,417,822.51. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 114,828 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,168,104.52. 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 36,094 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.65, for a total value of $997,999.10. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 140,829 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,893,921.85. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Michael A. Henderson sold 51,389 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.59, for a total value of $1,417,822.51. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 114,828 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,168,104.52. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 281,332 shares of company stock worth $7,644,903 in the last ninety days. 0.42% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Smithfield Trust Co raised its stake in shares of Marathon Oil by 367.9% in the 3rd quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 1,020 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 802 shares in the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in Marathon Oil in the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new position in shares of Marathon Oil in the 1st quarter worth approximately $27,000. Fortis Group Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Marathon Oil by 100.0% in the 4th quarter. Fortis Group Advisors LLC now owns 1,236 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 618 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Manchester Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Marathon Oil during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.24% of the company’s stock.

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.