Segment Wealth Management LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Segment Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 2.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,608 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after purchasing an additional 115 shares during the quarter. Segment Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $782,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Gladius Capital Management LP acquired a new position in Marathon Petroleum during the third quarter worth approximately $26,000. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC lifted 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 during the period. True Wealth Design LLC boosted its holdings in Marathon Petroleum by 672.7% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 170 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 148 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Marathon Petroleum during the third quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the 3rd quarter worth $33,000. 76.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Marathon Petroleum

In other news, Director Jeffrey C. Campbell bought 6,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 4th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $149.61 per share, with a total value of $897,660.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 6,090 shares in the company, valued at approximately $911,124.90. This trade represents a 6,666.67 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.21% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Marathon Petroleum Price Performance

Shares of MPC opened at $152.83 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94. The firm has a market cap of $49.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.11, a PEG ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 1.42. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a 52 week low of $130.54 and a 52 week high of $221.11. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $147.76 and a 200-day moving average of $159.10.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The oil and gas company reported $1.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.90. The firm had revenue of $35.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.34 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 3.15% and a return on equity of 16.19%. Marathon Petroleum’s revenue was down 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $8.14 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 8.88 EPS for the current year.

Marathon Petroleum announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Tuesday, November 5th that allows the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the oil and gas company to repurchase up to 10% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Marathon Petroleum Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th were given a $0.91 dividend. This is a boost from Marathon Petroleum’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.38%. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio is 28.84%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $170.00 price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Bank of America started coverage on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $174.00 target price on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $172.00 to $171.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Citigroup lowered their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $172.00 to $167.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $200.00 to $190.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Marathon Petroleum presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $181.20.

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.