Darwin Wealth Management LLC Takes $33,000 Position in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund purchased 200 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock, valued at approximately $33,000.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Gladius Capital Management LP bought a new position in Marathon Petroleum in the third quarter worth $26,000. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 88.9% in the 3rd quarter. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC now owns 170 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the first quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Marathon Petroleum during the third quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, TruNorth Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Marathon Petroleum in the 2nd quarter worth about $35,000. 76.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Marathon Petroleum Price Performance

Shares of Marathon Petroleum stock opened at $159.49 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $51.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.64, a PEG ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $158.88 and its 200-day simple moving average is $167.81. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a 52 week low of $140.98 and a 52 week high of $221.11.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 5th. The oil and gas company reported $1.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.90. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 3.15% and a return on equity of 16.19%. The business had revenue of $35.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.34 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $8.14 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 9.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

Marathon Petroleum Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be given a dividend of $0.91 per share. This is a positive change from Marathon Petroleum’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.28%. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.15%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MPC has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Barclays lowered their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $168.00 to $159.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 11th. Mizuho cut their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $198.00 to $193.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co. cut shares of Marathon Petroleum from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, September 9th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $196.00 to $182.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Finally, Tudor Pickering downgraded shares of Marathon Petroleum from a “strong-buy” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Monday, September 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $185.07.

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.