Cozad Asset Management Inc. Trims Stock Position in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Cozad Asset Management Inc. lowered its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 35.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,623 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 1,468 shares during the period. Cozad Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $366,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of MPC. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in Marathon Petroleum in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. True Wealth Design LLC grew its stake 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 in the last quarter. Asset Planning Inc purchased a new position in Marathon Petroleum in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new position in Marathon Petroleum in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Marathon Petroleum in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.77% of the company’s stock.

Marathon Petroleum Trading Down 0.1 %

NYSE:MPC opened at $146.00 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $148.56 and a 200 day moving average of $152.54. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a 52 week low of $130.54 and a 52 week high of $221.11. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94. The firm has a market capitalization of $45.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.70, a P/E/G ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 1.39.

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

Marathon Petroleum Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have commented on MPC. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $182.00 to $183.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $170.00 price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $159.00 to $161.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. 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 note on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Raymond James upped their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $190.00 to $192.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Marathon Petroleum has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $182.13.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Marathon Petroleum Company 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.