Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) Shares Bought by UniSuper Management Pty Ltd

UniSuper Management Pty Ltd grew its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 23.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 25,994 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,932 shares during the quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $3,626,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in MPC. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in Marathon Petroleum in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. True Wealth Design LLC increased its holdings in shares of 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 valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares during the period. Asset Planning Inc acquired a new stake in Marathon Petroleum during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new position in Marathon Petroleum during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Cape Investment Advisory Inc. increased its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 762.9% in the fourth quarter. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 302 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 267 shares during the period. 76.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Marathon Petroleum Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MPC opened at $144.05 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 1.23 and a quick ratio of 0.76. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $148.74 and its 200-day simple moving average is $151.59. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a 12 month low of $130.54 and a 12 month high of $221.11.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The oil and gas company reported $0.77 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.06 by $0.71. The company had revenue of $33.47 billion for 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%. Marathon Petroleum’s revenue was down 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.98 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 8.47 earnings per share 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 given a dividend of $0.91 per share. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.53%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 19th. Marathon Petroleum’s payout ratio is currently 36.66%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $183.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Tudor Pickering upgraded Marathon Petroleum from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Mizuho cut their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $175.00 to $174.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $159.00 to $161.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Finally, Piper Sandler cut their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $160.00 to $156.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Marathon Petroleum has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $180.21.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marathon Petroleum

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

Marathon Petroleum Profile

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.