FourThought Financial Partners LLC Takes $4.60 Million Position in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

FourThought Financial Partners LLC acquired a new position in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 32,975 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,600,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MPC. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale boosted its position in Marathon Petroleum by 3.6% during the third quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 149,014 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $24,313,000 after acquiring an additional 5,133 shares during the last quarter. Inscription Capital LLC grew its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 8.5% in the third quarter. Inscription Capital LLC now owns 3,340 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $544,000 after acquiring an additional 261 shares during the period. Hunter Associates Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 10.6% during the 3rd quarter. Hunter Associates Investment Management LLC now owns 3,005 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $491,000 after purchasing an additional 287 shares in the last quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 34.0% during the third quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,235 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $342,000 after acquiring an additional 567 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Smith Group Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Marathon Petroleum by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Smith Group Asset Management LLC now owns 72,284 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $11,776,000 after acquiring an additional 951 shares in the last quarter. 76.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Marathon Petroleum Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MPC opened at $152.70 on Tuesday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $147.01 and its 200 day moving average is $156.24. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a 52 week low of $130.54 and a 52 week high of $221.11. The stock has a market cap of $49.07 billion, a PE ratio of 15.38, a PEG ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 1.41.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The oil and gas company reported $0.77 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.06 by $0.71. The firm had revenue of $33.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.94 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 12.07% and a net margin of 2.45%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.98 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 8.47 earnings per share for the current 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 given a dividend of $0.91 per share. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.38%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 19th. Marathon Petroleum’s payout ratio is 36.66%.

Marathon Petroleum declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, November 5th that permits the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the oil and gas company to buy up to 10% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on MPC shares. Tudor Pickering raised Marathon Petroleum from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Raymond James raised their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $190.00 to $192.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $168.00 to $159.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 11th. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $170.00 price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $182.00 to $183.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $181.27.

Insider Transactions at Marathon Petroleum

In related news, Director Jeffrey C. Campbell bought 6,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 4th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $149.61 per share, with a total value of $897,660.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 6,090 shares in the company, valued at approximately $911,124.90. This trade represents a 6,666.67 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.21% 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.