Stephens Inc. AR Trims Position in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Stephens Inc. AR reduced its holdings in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 4.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 8,519 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 384 shares during the period. Stephens Inc. AR’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $1,188,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Quotient Wealth Partners LLC lifted its position in Marathon Petroleum by 162.3% during the fourth quarter. Quotient Wealth Partners LLC now owns 6,473 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $903,000 after purchasing an additional 4,005 shares during the period. AlphaStar Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the fourth quarter worth about $201,000. Entropy Technologies LP acquired a new stake in Marathon Petroleum during the fourth quarter worth about $2,122,000. Counterweight Ventures LLC raised its position in Marathon Petroleum by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Counterweight Ventures LLC now owns 9,951 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,388,000 after acquiring an additional 154 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cidel Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Marathon Petroleum by 13.5% in the fourth quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. now owns 6,923 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $966,000 after acquiring an additional 822 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.77% of the company’s stock.

Marathon Petroleum Trading Down 3.9 %

Shares of MPC stock opened at $149.26 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a twelve month low of $130.54 and a twelve month high of $221.11. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $145.84 and its 200-day moving average price is $157.27. The stock has a market cap of $47.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.03, a PEG ratio of 2.91 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 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $31.94 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.98 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 8.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Marathon Petroleum Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors 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 dividend yield of 2.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 19th. Marathon Petroleum’s payout ratio is 36.66%.

Marathon Petroleum announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan 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 purchase up to 10% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on MPC shares. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price 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. 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 price target on the stock. Mizuho lowered their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $175.00 to $174.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 16th. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating and issued a $170.00 price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Tudor Pickering upgraded Marathon Petroleum from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $181.27.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marathon Petroleum

In related news, Director Jeffrey C. Campbell bought 6,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 4th. The stock was purchased at an average price 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 trade represents a 6,666.67 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.