Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) Stock Price Down 8.2% – Should You Sell?

Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:MPC) traded down 8.2% during trading on Wednesday. The company traded as low as $379.10 and last traded at $392.0880. Approximately 4,008,166 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 62% from the average daily volume of 2,469,925 shares. The stock had previously closed at $427.34.

Key Stories Impacting Marathon Petroleum

Here are the key news stories impacting Marathon Petroleum this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Third-quarter adjusted EPS was $26.93, above analyst expectations, while adjusted EBITDA reached $11.7 billion. Record refinery utilization and sharply stronger refining margins drove the results. MPC Q3 Earnings Beat Estimates on Strong Refining Margins
• Positive Sentiment: MPC raised its quarterly dividend by 10% and announced a $5 billion share-buyback authorization, signaling confidence in cash generation and returning capital to shareholders. Marathon Petroleum Raises Dividend 10% and Approves $5 Billion Buyback
• Positive Sentiment: MPC agreed to sell its St. Paul Park and Mandan refineries and related operations to CVR Energy in a $4.2 billion transaction. The company plans to focus investment primarily on Gulf Coast growth, though the transaction remains subject to completion. Marathon beats quarterly estimates, to sell two refineries to CVR Energy
• Negative Sentiment: The earnings surge depends heavily on exceptionally favorable refining margins. If margins normalize, profits could fall from the current high levels; selling two refineries also reshapes MPC’s footprint and removes those assets from its portfolio. Marathon Petroleum Refining Margin Jumps 160%: Rapid Earnings Reaction
• Negative Sentiment: A report highlighted MPC shedding roughly $8 billion in market value in one session, indicating substantial selling pressure despite the earnings beat and announced capital returns. Marathon Petroleum Sheds About $8 Billion in a Single Session

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on MPC. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $453.00 to $458.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $344.00 to $462.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 3rd. UBS Group set a $510.00 target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a report on Friday, October 9th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $560.00 to $564.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Mizuho upped their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $304.00 to $457.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Marathon Petroleum presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $424.88.

Marathon Petroleum Stock Down 8.2%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 0.89. The stock has a market cap of $114.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.11 and a beta of 0.53. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $420.48 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $292.28.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, November 3rd. The oil and gas company reported $26.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $25.37 by $1.56. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 31.96% and a net margin of 5.48%. The firm had revenue of $56.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $46.60 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.01 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 57.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Marathon Petroleum Corporation will post 64.12 EPS for the current year.

Marathon Petroleum Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 18th will be issued a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 18th. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio is 13.75%.

Insider Transactions at Marathon Petroleum

In related news, insider Molly Benson sold 17,196 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $358.57, for a total transaction of $6,165,969.72. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 30,334 shares in the company, valued at $10,876,862.38. This trade represents a 36.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Erin M. Brzezinski sold 570 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $362.79, for a total transaction of $206,790.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 1,576 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $571,757.04. The trade was a 26.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 21,691 shares of company stock valued at $7,780,127 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Focus Financial Network Inc. increased its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. now owns 1,066 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $422,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. CRA Financial Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. CRA Financial Services LLC now owns 1,844 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $729,000 after buying an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,130 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $842,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares during the period. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Marathon Petroleum by 7.8% in the 3rd quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 316 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $125,000 after acquiring an additional 23 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Global Assets Advisory LLC increased its holdings in Marathon Petroleum by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Global Assets Advisory LLC now owns 1,442 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $630,000 after acquiring an additional 23 shares during the last quarter. 76.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Marathon Petroleum Company Profile

Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:MPC) is an American downstream energy company engaged in refining, marketing, and transporting petroleum products. Its operations include converting crude oil into gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, asphalt, propane, and other refined products used by transportation, industrial, and commercial customers.

The company markets fuel under the Marathon brand and supplies products to independent marketers, commercial businesses, and other wholesale customers. Marathon Petroleum also owns a general-partner interest and significant limited-partner interest in MPLX Inc, a midstream company that operates pipelines, storage facilities, terminals, and gathering and processing assets supporting the movement of crude oil and natural gas liquids.

Marathon Petroleum’s refining and midstream activities are concentrated in the United States, with assets serving regions across the Midwest, Gulf Coast, and West Coast.