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

Shares of Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:MPC) have been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the sixteen ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $189.3571.

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on MPC shares. Raymond James Financial boosted their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $195.00 to $199.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Wolfe Research cut shares of Marathon Petroleum from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $184.00 to $222.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday. TD Cowen reduced their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $190.00 to $182.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, Scotiabank reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a research report on Friday, July 11th.

Marathon Petroleum Price Performance

MPC stock opened at $182.14 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $172.65 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $156.93. Marathon Petroleum has a 12-month low of $115.10 and a 12-month high of $186.28. The stock has a market capitalization of $55.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.02, a PEG ratio of 3.67 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The oil and gas company reported $3.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.22 by $0.74. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 1.58% and a return on equity of 8.38%. The company had revenue of $34.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $31.70 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $4.12 earnings per share. Marathon Petroleum’s quarterly revenue was down 11.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Marathon Petroleum will post 8.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Marathon Petroleum Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 20th were paid a dividend of $0.91 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 20th. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. Marathon Petroleum’s payout ratio is presently 54.01%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Kim K.W. Rucker sold 7,392 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.00, for a total value of $1,293,600.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 18,944 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,315,200. This represents a 28.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Molly R. Benson sold 10,879 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.00, for a total transaction of $1,773,277.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 28,700 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,678,100. This represents a 27.49% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Baker Tilly Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 2.8% in the second quarter. Baker Tilly Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,226 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $370,000 after buying an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. CHICAGO TRUST Co NA lifted its position in Marathon Petroleum by 3.9% during the second quarter. CHICAGO TRUST Co NA now owns 1,684 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $280,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the period. Werba Rubin Papier Wealth Management lifted its position in Marathon Petroleum by 4.2% during the second quarter. Werba Rubin Papier Wealth Management now owns 1,577 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $262,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares during the period. AdvisorShares Investments LLC lifted its position in Marathon Petroleum by 2.4% during the second quarter. AdvisorShares Investments LLC now owns 2,828 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $470,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the period. Finally, Joseph Group Capital Management lifted its position in Marathon Petroleum by 0.3% during the second quarter. Joseph Group Capital Management now owns 21,904 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $3,639,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 76.77% 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.