Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Raises Stock Holdings in Marathon Petroleum Corporation $MPC

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its position in Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:MPC) by 36.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 65,336 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after acquiring an additional 17,417 shares during the quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $10,625,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. State of Wyoming lifted its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 343.9% in the fourth quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 4,612 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $750,000 after acquiring an additional 3,573 shares in the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc lifted its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 127,298 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $20,702,000 after acquiring an additional 1,313 shares in the last quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. lifted its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 53.6% in the fourth quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 213,851 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $34,779,000 after acquiring an additional 74,611 shares in the last quarter. Avestar Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Avestar Capital LLC now owns 2,963 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $482,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Shepherd Street Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $878,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.77% of the company’s stock.

Marathon Petroleum Price Performance

MPC stock opened at $262.26 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $242.90 and a two-hundred day moving average of $210.01. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31. The stock has a market cap of $76.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.42 and a beta of 0.52. Marathon Petroleum Corporation has a 52-week low of $158.00 and a 52-week high of $272.46.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The oil and gas company reported $1.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.91. The company had revenue of $34.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $33.42 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 16.22% and a net margin of 3.36%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned ($0.24) earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Marathon Petroleum Corporation will post 30.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Marathon Petroleum Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 20th will be paid a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 20th. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.11%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Barclays increased their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $230.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. TD Cowen increased their price target on Marathon Petroleum to $320.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $264.00 to $291.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. UBS Group set a $285.00 price target on Marathon Petroleum in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Mizuho increased their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $224.00 to $284.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $268.50.

Insider Transactions at Marathon Petroleum

In other Marathon Petroleum news, insider Ricky D. Hessling sold 1,626 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $228.18, for a total transaction of $371,020.68. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 7,525 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,717,054.50. This trade represents a 17.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders sold a total of 4,473 shares of company stock worth $1,015,428 over the last ninety days. 0.17% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Marathon Petroleum

Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE: MPC) is a U.S.-based downstream energy company engaged principally in the refining, marketing, supply and transportation of petroleum products. The company was formed through a spin-off from Marathon Oil in 2011 and operates an integrated system of refining and logistics assets that support the production and distribution of transportation fuels and other refined petroleum products.

Marathon Petroleum’s operations include refining crude oil into gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, asphalt and other specialty products, as well as managing the distribution and storage infrastructure needed to move those products to market.