Zullo Investment Group Inc. Has $277,000 Stock Holdings in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Zullo Investment Group Inc. increased its position in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 7.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,986 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after purchasing an additional 138 shares during the quarter. Zullo Investment Group Inc.’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $277,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Gladius Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Marathon Petroleum by 88.9% during 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 during the period. True Wealth Design LLC raised its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 672.7% during the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 170 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares during the last quarter. Asset Planning Inc acquired a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the third quarter worth $30,000. 76.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MPC has been the topic of several analyst reports. Raymond James increased their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $190.00 to $192.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating and set a $170.00 price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $182.00 to $183.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Tudor Pickering upgraded shares of Marathon Petroleum from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Mizuho decreased their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $175.00 to $174.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $181.27.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Jeffrey C. Campbell acquired 6,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 4th. The stock was bought at an average price of $149.61 per share, for a total transaction of $897,660.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 6,090 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $911,124.90. The trade was a 6,666.67 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Marathon Petroleum Stock Down 1.4 %

MPC stock opened at $156.79 on Thursday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $146.32 and a 200-day moving average of $156.63. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a fifty-two week low of $130.54 and a fifty-two week high of $221.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $50.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.79, a P/E/G ratio of 3.13 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 1.23 and a quick ratio of 0.76.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The oil and gas company reported $0.77 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.06 by $0.71. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 12.07% and a net margin of 2.45%. The firm had revenue of $33.47 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $31.94 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.98 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 8.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 19th will be paid a $0.91 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 19th. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.32%. Marathon Petroleum’s payout ratio is currently 36.66%.

Marathon Petroleum declared that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Tuesday, November 5th that authorizes the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the oil and gas company to purchase up to 10% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

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.