Sentry Investment Management LLC Sells 97 Shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Sentry Investment Management LLC trimmed its stake in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 2.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,244 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 97 shares during the period. Sentry Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $592,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MPC. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale boosted its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 149,014 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $24,313,000 after buying an additional 5,133 shares during the period. Inscription Capital LLC lifted its position in Marathon Petroleum by 8.5% during the 3rd quarter. Inscription Capital LLC now owns 3,340 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $544,000 after acquiring an additional 261 shares during the last quarter. Hunter Associates Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Marathon Petroleum by 10.6% during the third quarter. Hunter Associates Investment Management LLC now owns 3,005 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $491,000 after acquiring an additional 287 shares during the period. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 34.0% in the third quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,235 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $342,000 after purchasing an additional 567 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Smith Group Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 1.3% in the third quarter. Smith Group Asset Management LLC now owns 72,284 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $11,776,000 after purchasing an additional 951 shares during the period. 76.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Marathon Petroleum Trading Down 0.7 %

MPC stock opened at $152.70 on Tuesday. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a 1-year low of $130.54 and a 1-year high of $221.11. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94. The business’s 50 day moving average is $147.01 and its 200-day moving average is $156.24. The firm has a market cap of $49.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.38, a P/E/G ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 1.41.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The oil and gas company reported $0.77 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.06 by $0.71. The firm had revenue of $33.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $31.94 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 12.07% and a net margin of 2.45%. The business’s revenue was down 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.98 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 8.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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 issued a dividend of $0.91 per share. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.38%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 19th. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.66%.

Marathon Petroleum declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, November 5th that allows the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the oil and gas company to buy up to 10% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently weighed in on MPC shares. Barclays decreased their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $168.00 to $159.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Tudor Pickering upgraded shares of Marathon Petroleum from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $182.00 to $183.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Raymond James increased their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $190.00 to $192.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating and set a $170.00 price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Marathon Petroleum currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $181.27.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marathon Petroleum

In other news, Director Jeffrey C. Campbell acquired 6,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 4th. The stock was bought at an average price of $149.61 per share, with a total value of $897,660.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 6,090 shares in the company, valued at approximately $911,124.90. This represents a 6,666.67 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

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.