BMO Capital Markets Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) Stock Price

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) had its price objective lowered by equities researchers at BMO Capital Markets from $208.00 to $200.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday,MarketScreener reports. The brokerage presently has an “outperform” rating on the oil and gas company’s stock. BMO Capital Markets’ target price points to a potential upside of 12.87% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other research analysts have also commented on the company. Scotiabank reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a research report on Thursday, October 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $211.00 to $179.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Zacks Research upgraded Marathon Petroleum from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Mizuho upped their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $198.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $203.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $196.79.

Marathon Petroleum Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MPC traded down $3.89 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $177.20. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,003,971 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,602,306. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $182.49 and its 200-day simple moving average is $180.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 0.79. Marathon Petroleum has a fifty-two week low of $115.10 and a fifty-two week high of $202.29. The company has a market capitalization of $53.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.89, a P/E/G ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 0.74.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The oil and gas company reported $3.01 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.00 by $0.01. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 2.13% and a return on equity of 9.76%. The company had revenue of $34.81 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $31.06 billion. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Marathon Petroleum will post 8.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Marathon Petroleum

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of MPC. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the 2nd quarter worth about $25,000. Activest Wealth Management grew its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 290.2% during the second quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 160 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares during the period. NewSquare Capital LLC lifted its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 103.1% in the second quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 199 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 101 shares during the period. WFA of San Diego LLC bought a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Transce3nd LLC grew its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 10,250.0% during the 2nd quarter. Transce3nd LLC now owns 207 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 205 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.77% of the company’s stock.

About Marathon Petroleum

Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE: MPC) is a U.S.-based downstream energy company engaged principally in the refining, marketing, supply and transportation of petroleum products. The company was formed through a spin-off from Marathon Oil in 2011 and operates an integrated system of refining and logistics assets that support the production and distribution of transportation fuels and other refined petroleum products.

Marathon Petroleum’s operations include refining crude oil into gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, asphalt and other specialty products, as well as managing the distribution and storage infrastructure needed to move those products to market.