Cerity Partners LLC Cuts Stock Position in Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO)

Cerity Partners LLC lessened its stake in Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO) by 2.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 235,234 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 5,520 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC’s holdings in Marathon Oil were worth $5,683,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of MRO. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Marathon Oil by 51.4% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 27,988,152 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $748,683,000 after acquiring an additional 9,504,754 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in shares of Marathon Oil by 1,220.4% during the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 8,754,588 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $219,828,000 after acquiring an additional 8,091,570 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in shares of Marathon Oil by 1,134.4% during the first quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 5,457,542 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $130,763,000 after acquiring an additional 5,015,428 shares during the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP purchased a new stake in shares of Marathon Oil during the second quarter worth about $89,591,000. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Marathon Oil by 60.1% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 7,739,802 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $194,346,000 after acquiring an additional 2,904,140 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.24% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Patrick Wagner sold 36,094 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.65, for a total transaction of $997,999.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 140,829 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,893,921.85. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Lee M. Tillman sold 80,647 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.94, for a total value of $2,172,630.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 596,330 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,065,130.20. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Patrick Wagner sold 36,094 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.65, for a total value of $997,999.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 140,829 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,893,921.85. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 281,332 shares of company stock valued at $7,644,903. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently commented on MRO. Benchmark lifted their target price on Marathon Oil from $25.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $33.00 target price on shares of Marathon Oil in a report on Tuesday, March 5th. Barclays began coverage on Marathon Oil in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $35.00 target price for the company. Raymond James decreased their target price on Marathon Oil from $35.00 to $32.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their target price on Marathon Oil from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 5th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $32.66.

Marathon Oil Stock Down 1.5 %

NYSE:MRO opened at $28.35 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.20 billion, a PE ratio of 11.07 and a beta of 2.22. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $25.94 and a 200-day moving average of $25.31. Marathon Oil Co. has a 52 week low of $21.63 and a 52 week high of $30.06. The company has a current ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30.

Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 22nd. The oil and gas producer reported $0.69 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.62 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $1.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.66 billion. Marathon Oil had a return on equity of 14.09% and a net margin of 23.20%. The business’s revenue was down 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.88 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Marathon Oil Co. will post 2.62 EPS for the current year.

Marathon Oil Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 21st were issued a dividend of $0.11 per share. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.55%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 20th. Marathon Oil’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.19%.

Marathon Oil Company Profile

Marathon Oil Corporation, an independent exploration and production company, engages in exploration, production, and marketing of crude oil and condensate, natural gas liquids, and natural gas in the United States and internationally. The company also produces and markets products manufactured from natural gas, such as liquefied natural gas and methanol.