Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) Shares Acquired by Natixis

Natixis lifted its position in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 1,191.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,983 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,752 shares during the quarter. Natixis’ holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $601,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA purchased a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 400.0% in the first quarter. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC now owns 125 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. ICA Group Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Marathon Petroleum during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Vima LLC purchased a new position in Marathon Petroleum during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Bare Financial Services Inc purchased a new position in Marathon Petroleum during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. 76.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Marathon Petroleum Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MPC traded up $0.31 during trading on Friday, reaching $171.81. The stock had a trading volume of 81,287 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,667,903. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.43. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $171.94 and a 200-day moving average price of $177.80. The stock has a market cap of $60.53 billion, a PE ratio of 8.57, a PEG ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 1.40. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a 1-year low of $128.07 and a 1-year high of $221.11.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The oil and gas company reported $2.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.53 by $0.25. The firm had revenue of $32.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $32.07 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 25.87% and a net margin of 5.32%. The business’s revenue was down 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $6.09 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 13.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum announced that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Tuesday, April 30th that allows the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the oil and gas company to buy up to 7.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MPC has been the subject of several recent research reports. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $222.00 to $231.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 15th. Piper Sandler reduced their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $190.00 to $168.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, June 14th. StockNews.com cut Marathon Petroleum from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, June 14th. Raymond James reduced their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $235.00 to $230.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. Finally, Mizuho reduced their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $203.00 to $201.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, June 20th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Marathon Petroleum currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $193.64.

Marathon Petroleum Company Profile

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.