Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) Holdings Boosted by Smithfield Trust Co

Smithfield Trust Co grew its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 17.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,329 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after purchasing an additional 350 shares during the quarter. Smithfield Trust Co’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $379,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Natixis grew its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 1,191.3% during the first quarter. Natixis now owns 2,983 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $601,000 after acquiring an additional 2,752 shares during the last quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the first quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Shell Asset Management Co. raised its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 65.9% during the first quarter. Shell Asset Management Co. now owns 5,067 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,021,000 after buying an additional 2,012 shares during the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 6.3% during the first quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 15,158 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $3,054,000 after buying an additional 895 shares during the period. Finally, Stonebridge Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Marathon Petroleum in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $226,000. Institutional investors own 76.77% of the company’s stock.

Marathon Petroleum Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of Marathon Petroleum stock opened at $159.49 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $158.88 and a 200-day simple moving average of $167.81. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a 52-week low of $140.98 and a 52-week high of $221.11. The firm has a market cap of $51.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.64, a P/E/G ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 1.23 and a quick ratio of 0.76.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The oil and gas company reported $1.87 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.97 by $0.90. The company had revenue of $35.37 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.34 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 3.15% and a return on equity of 16.19%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $8.14 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 9.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Tuesday, November 5th that authorizes the company to buyback $5.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the oil and gas company to reacquire up to 10% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Marathon Petroleum Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be given a $0.91 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.28%. This is a boost from Marathon Petroleum’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. Marathon Petroleum’s payout ratio is currently 26.15%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co. downgraded shares of Marathon Petroleum from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, September 9th. Mizuho dropped their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $198.00 to $193.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, September 16th. Barclays dropped their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $168.00 to $159.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 11th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $200.00 to $190.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $172.00 to $171.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $185.07.

Marathon Petroleum 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.