Syon Capital LLC Boosts Holdings in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Syon Capital LLC boosted its position in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 24.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 16,586 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after buying an additional 3,310 shares during the period. Syon Capital LLC’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $2,461,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA purchased a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Bare Financial Services Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Manchester Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 97.2% during the 4th quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 215 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pittenger & Anderson Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the 4th quarter worth $36,000. 76.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Marathon Petroleum Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE MPC traded down $0.44 on Friday, reaching $170.07. 2,933,965 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,418,018. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a fifty-two week low of $108.88 and a fifty-two week high of $221.11. The company has a 50 day moving average of $185.37 and a 200 day moving average of $173.88. The company has a current ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $59.92 billion, a PE ratio of 8.50, a P/E/G ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 1.45.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 30th. The oil and gas company reported $2.78 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.53 by $0.25. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 5.32% and a return on equity of 25.87%. The company had revenue of $32.71 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $32.07 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $6.09 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 19.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Tuesday, April 30th that permits the company to buyback $5.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the oil and gas company to buy up to 7.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Marathon Petroleum Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 16th were issued a dividend of $0.825 per share. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 15th. Marathon Petroleum’s payout ratio is currently 16.48%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have commented on MPC shares. Scotiabank boosted their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $175.00 to $207.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Tudor Pickering raised Marathon Petroleum to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $227.00 to $223.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, June 6th. Raymond James cut their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $235.00 to $230.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Finally, Mizuho lifted their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $200.00 to $203.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, May 13th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $192.23.

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.