Wealth Architects LLC Reduces Holdings in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Wealth Architects LLC cut its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 5.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,696 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 93 shares during the quarter. Wealth Architects LLC’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $237,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Gladius Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in Marathon Petroleum in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in Marathon Petroleum in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its holdings in Marathon Petroleum by 672.7% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 170 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 148 shares during the period. Asset Planning Inc purchased a new stake in Marathon Petroleum in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in Marathon Petroleum in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. 76.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have weighed in on MPC. Barclays increased their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $159.00 to $161.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday. Mizuho decreased their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $175.00 to $174.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Raymond James increased their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $190.00 to $192.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $182.00 to $183.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Tudor Pickering raised Marathon Petroleum from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $182.13.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Evan Bayh purchased 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $133.70 per share, for a total transaction of $133,700.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 69,305 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,266,078.50. This represents a 1.46 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Ricky D. Hessling purchased 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $134.72 per share, for a total transaction of $269,440.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider now owns 12,162 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,638,464.64. The trade was a 19.68 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Marathon Petroleum Stock Up 3.6 %

Marathon Petroleum stock opened at $146.27 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $45.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.73, a PEG ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 1.39. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $148.48 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $152.76. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a 12 month low of $130.54 and a 12 month high of $221.11. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The oil and gas company reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.06 by $0.71. The business had revenue of $33.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.94 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 12.07% and a net margin of 2.45%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.98 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 8.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 19th were issued a $0.91 dividend. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 19th. Marathon Petroleum’s payout ratio is 36.66%.

About Marathon Petroleum

Marathon Petroleum Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an integrated downstream energy company primarily in the United States. The company operates through Refining & Marketing, and Midstream segments. The Refining & Marketing segment refines crude oil and other feedstocks at its refineries in the Gulf Coast, Mid-Continent, and West Coast regions of the United States; and purchases refined products and ethanol for resale and distributes refined products, including renewable diesel, through transportation, storage, distribution, and marketing services.