Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) Releases Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.01 EPS

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday. The oil and gas company reported $3.01 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.00 by $0.01, Zacks reports. The firm had revenue of $35.85 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.06 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 8.38% and a net margin of 1.58%.

Marathon Petroleum Price Performance

NYSE MPC opened at $195.93 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $186.93 and its two-hundred day moving average is $170.76. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. The stock has a market cap of $59.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.07, a PEG ratio of 4.08 and a beta of 0.90. Marathon Petroleum has a 12 month low of $115.10 and a 12 month high of $201.61.

Marathon Petroleum Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 19th will be given a dividend of $1.00 per share. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 19th. This is an increase from Marathon Petroleum’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. Marathon Petroleum’s payout ratio is presently 54.01%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently commented on MPC shares. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $182.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a research note on Friday, October 17th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $214.00 price objective for the company. Bank of America raised their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $184.00 to $192.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 3rd. Mizuho increased their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $184.00 to $188.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, September 15th. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $176.00 to $194.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $200.31.

Insider Transactions at Marathon Petroleum

In other Marathon Petroleum news, insider Molly R. Benson sold 10,879 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.00, for a total value of $1,773,277.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 28,700 shares in the company, valued at $4,678,100. This represents a 27.49% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in MPC. WFA of San Diego LLC bought a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the second quarter worth about $33,000. McIlrath & Eck LLC increased its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 15.8% in the 2nd quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 792 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $132,000 after acquiring an additional 108 shares during the last quarter. MUFG Securities EMEA plc purchased a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $151,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 7.1% during the 2nd quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 1,037 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $172,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Alaethes Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Marathon Petroleum in the second quarter worth $218,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.77% 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.