Leavell Investment Management Inc. Sells 5,199 Shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Leavell Investment Management Inc. decreased its stake in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 22.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 18,397 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 5,199 shares during the quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $2,566,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Gladius Capital Management LP bought a new stake in Marathon Petroleum during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 88.9% during the 3rd quarter. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC now owns 170 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the period. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 672.7% during the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 170 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 148 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Marathon Petroleum in the 3rd quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Marathon Petroleum in the 3rd quarter worth $33,000. 76.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Marathon Petroleum

In other Marathon Petroleum news, Director Jeffrey C. Campbell bought 6,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 4th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $149.61 per share, for a total transaction of $897,660.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 6,090 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $911,124.90. This represents a 6,666.67 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Marathon Petroleum Trading Down 3.9 %

Shares of NYSE MPC opened at $149.26 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $47.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.03, a PEG ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 1.41. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a 1-year low of $130.54 and a 1-year high of $221.11. The business’s 50 day moving average is $145.84 and its two-hundred day moving average is $157.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 1.23 and a quick ratio of 0.76.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The oil and gas company reported $0.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.06 by $0.71. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 12.07% and a net margin of 2.45%. The company had revenue of $33.47 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $31.94 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.98 earnings per share. Marathon Petroleum’s revenue was down 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 8.7 EPS for the current year.

Marathon Petroleum announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Tuesday, November 5th that allows the company to buyback $5.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the oil and gas company to repurchase up to 10% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Marathon Petroleum Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 19th will be paid a dividend of $0.91 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 19th. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.44%. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.66%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Tudor Pickering upgraded Marathon Petroleum from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating and issued a $170.00 price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $182.00 to $183.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $174.00 target price for the company. Finally, Mizuho reduced their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $175.00 to $174.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $181.27.

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.