Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) Position Boosted by Hancock Whitney Corp

Hancock Whitney Corp lifted its stake in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 0.6% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 20,301 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after purchasing an additional 126 shares during the quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $3,307,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 4.7% during the 1st quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 13,188 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $2,657,000 after acquiring an additional 588 shares in the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC grew its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 19.6% in the first quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 44,149 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $8,883,000 after purchasing an additional 7,244 shares in the last quarter. Castleark Management LLC increased its position in Marathon Petroleum by 19.3% in the 1st quarter. Castleark Management LLC now owns 19,739 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $3,977,000 after purchasing an additional 3,200 shares during the last quarter. First Western Trust Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the 1st quarter worth about $220,000. Finally, New Covenant Trust Company N.A. acquired a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the 1st quarter valued at about $198,000. 76.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Marathon Petroleum Trading Down 1.3 %

Shares of MPC stock opened at $156.47 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a 1 year low of $140.98 and a 1 year high of $221.11. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $158.69 and its 200 day simple moving average is $167.27. The firm has a market capitalization of $50.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 1.38.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 5th. The oil and gas company reported $1.87 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.90. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 3.15% and a return on equity of 16.19%. The business had revenue of $35.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.34 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $8.14 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 9.59 EPS for the current year.

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

Marathon Petroleum Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.91 per share. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.33%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 20th. This is a positive change from Marathon Petroleum’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.84%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Tudor Pickering lowered shares of Marathon Petroleum from a “strong-buy” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Monday, September 9th. Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co. downgraded shares of Marathon Petroleum from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, September 9th. Scotiabank decreased their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $191.00 to $170.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $196.00 to $183.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Citigroup lowered their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $172.00 to $167.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Marathon Petroleum has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $185.07.

About Marathon Petroleum

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.