RIA Advisory Group LLC Makes New $2 Million Investment in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

RIA Advisory Group LLC acquired a new position in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm acquired 12,303 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,004,000. Marathon Petroleum accounts for 0.7% of RIA Advisory Group LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 21st largest holding.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Marathon Petroleum by 19,153.8% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,311,182 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $213,605,000 after purchasing an additional 1,304,372 shares during the period. Granite Bay Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the 2nd quarter valued at about $219,537,000. ING Groep NV bought a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $114,107,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in Marathon Petroleum by 980.3% in the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 684,718 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $118,785,000 after acquiring an additional 621,336 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Panagora Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 64.1% during the 2nd quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 619,049 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $107,393,000 after acquiring an additional 241,746 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.77% of the company’s stock.

Marathon Petroleum Price Performance

MPC stock opened at $157.52 on Friday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $159.06 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $168.43. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a 52 week low of $140.98 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 $50.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 1.38.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The oil and gas company reported $1.87 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.97 by $0.90. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 16.19% and a net margin of 3.15%. The company had revenue of $35.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.34 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $8.14 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 9.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be given a dividend of $0.91 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.31%. This is an increase from Marathon Petroleum’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. Marathon Petroleum’s payout ratio is currently 26.15%.

Marathon Petroleum declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, November 5th that permits the company to buyback $5.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the oil and gas company to repurchase up to 10% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Tudor Pickering cut shares of Marathon Petroleum from a “strong-buy” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Monday, September 9th. Scotiabank cut their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $191.00 to $170.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $200.00 to $190.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 4th. Citigroup cut their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $172.00 to $167.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Bank of America began coverage on Marathon Petroleum in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $174.00 price target for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Marathon Petroleum currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $185.07.

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.