Denali Advisors LLC Increases Stake in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Denali Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 25.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,500 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after buying an additional 700 shares during the quarter. Denali Advisors LLC’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $488,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Gladius Capital Management LP purchased a new position in Marathon Petroleum during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of 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 valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC increased its position in Marathon Petroleum by 672.7% in the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 170 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 148 shares during the last quarter. Asset Planning Inc purchased a new stake in Marathon Petroleum during the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Marathon Petroleum during the third quarter valued at $30,000. Institutional investors own 76.77% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Tudor Pickering upgraded Marathon Petroleum from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $182.00 to $183.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $168.00 to $159.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 11th. Mizuho dropped their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $175.00 to $174.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Finally, TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $170.00 price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $181.27.

Insider Activity at Marathon Petroleum

In other news, Director Jeffrey C. Campbell purchased 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 4th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $149.61 per share, for a total transaction of $897,660.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 6,090 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $911,124.90. This represents a 6,666.67 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.21% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Marathon Petroleum Trading Up 1.2 %

NYSE MPC opened at $148.06 on Friday. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a one year low of $130.54 and a one year high of $221.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 1.23. The company has a market capitalization of $47.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 1.41. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $147.82 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $155.94.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The oil and gas company reported $0.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.06 by $0.71. The company had revenue of $33.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.94 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 2.45% and a return on equity of 12.07%. Marathon Petroleum’s revenue was down 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.98 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 8.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 19th will be paid a dividend of $0.91 per share. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.46%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 19th. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.66%.

Marathon Petroleum announced that its board has approved a share buyback 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 reacquire up to 10% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is 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.