Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) Upgraded to “Strong-Buy” by StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note released on Wednesday morning.

A number of other brokerages have also issued reports on MPC. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $168.00 to $221.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Piper Sandler increased their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $159.00 to $204.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Friday, April 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $175.00 to $211.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $214.00 to $227.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Finally, Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $185.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Friday, March 15th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Marathon Petroleum presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $193.77.

Marathon Petroleum Stock Down 1.5 %

Marathon Petroleum stock opened at $178.97 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $64.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.61, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.52. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. Marathon Petroleum has a twelve month low of $104.32 and a twelve month high of $221.11. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $193.61 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $167.76.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The oil and gas company reported $2.78 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.53 by $0.25. The firm had revenue of $32.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $32.07 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 6.44% and a return on equity of 30.58%. The business’s revenue was down 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $6.09 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Marathon Petroleum will post 20.49 EPS for the current year.

Marathon Petroleum announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, April 30th that authorizes the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the oil and gas company to buy up to 7.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Marathon Petroleum Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 16th will be given a dividend of $0.825 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 15th. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.84%. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio is 14.02%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marathon Petroleum

In other Marathon Petroleum news, Director Kim K.W. Rucker sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.35, for a total value of $170,350.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 23,446 shares in the company, valued at $3,994,026.10. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Marathon Petroleum

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Valley Brook Capital Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 1.8% during the first quarter. Valley Brook Capital Group Inc. now owns 6,660 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,342,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. PDS Planning Inc raised its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 3.7% during the first quarter. PDS Planning Inc now owns 2,737 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $552,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Pullen Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the first quarter valued at $2,208,000. High Note Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the first quarter valued at $1,622,000. Finally, Resonant Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 2.9% during the first quarter. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC now owns 20,404 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $4,111,000 after acquiring an additional 581 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.77% 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.