Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:MPC) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:MPC) has received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eighteen ratings firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $311.25.

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on MPC. Raymond James Financial upped their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $300.00 to $335.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $235.00 to $257.00 in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Barclays boosted their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $289.00 to $321.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. Jefferies Financial Group set a $335.00 price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, July 12th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a research report on Friday, June 12th.

Marathon Petroleum Trading Down 0.6%

NYSE MPC opened at $297.49 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $279.39 and a two-hundred day moving average of $241.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $86.85 billion, a PE ratio of 10.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.20 and a beta of 0.52. Marathon Petroleum has a 52 week low of $158.00 and a 52 week high of $326.92.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The oil and gas company reported $17.73 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $14.27 by $3.46. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 31.96% and a net margin of 5.48%.The firm had revenue of $51.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $40.87 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.96 earnings per share. Marathon Petroleum’s revenue for the quarter was up 53.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Marathon Petroleum will post 44.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 19th will be paid a $1.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 19th. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 13.75%.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Michael A. Henschen II sold 6,336 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $268.82, for a total transaction of $1,703,243.52. Following the sale, the vice president owned 16,900 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,543,058. The trade was a 27.27% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Marathon Petroleum

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Bell Investment Advisors Inc acquired a new position in Marathon Petroleum during the second quarter worth about $27,000. Main Street Group LTD acquired a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the first quarter worth $35,000. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Marathon Petroleum in the 1st quarter valued at about $40,000. Navalign LLC acquired a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in Marathon Petroleum in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. 76.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Marathon Petroleum Company Profile

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.