Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) Given New $170.00 Price Target at Scotiabank

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) had its price objective trimmed by Scotiabank from $191.00 to $170.00 in a report published on Thursday morning, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a sector outperform rating on the oil and gas company’s stock.

MPC has been the subject of several other research reports. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $200.00 to $190.00 and set an outperform rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 4th. TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $187.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $222.00 to $231.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Monday, July 15th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Marathon Petroleum from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note on Friday, June 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $196.00 to $183.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $190.73.

Marathon Petroleum Price Performance

Shares of MPC traded up $1.00 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $165.85. The stock had a trading volume of 207,613 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,688,009. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 1.31. The business has a fifty day moving average of $168.89 and a 200 day moving average of $177.59. Marathon Petroleum has a 12 month low of $140.98 and a 12 month high of $221.11. The firm has a market cap of $55.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.66, a PEG ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 1.37.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The oil and gas company reported $4.12 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.09 by $1.03. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 4.79% and a return on equity of 24.05%. The firm had revenue of $38.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $36.66 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $5.32 earnings per share. Marathon Petroleum’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Marathon Petroleum will post 10.22 EPS for the current year.

Marathon Petroleum Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 21st were paid a $0.825 dividend. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.99%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 21st. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio is presently 17.34%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in Marathon Petroleum by 400.0% during the 1st quarter. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC now owns 125 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Crewe Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Marathon Petroleum during the 1st quarter valued at about $29,000. Vima LLC purchased a new position in Marathon Petroleum during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. TruNorth Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the 2nd quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the 2nd quarter valued at about $35,000. Hedge funds and other 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.