Zhang Financial LLC Buys 1,830 Shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Zhang Financial LLC lifted its position in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 22.0% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 10,154 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,830 shares during the period. Zhang Financial LLC’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $1,416,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its position in Marathon Petroleum by 1,204.8% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 543,062 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $75,757,000 after buying an additional 501,441 shares during the period. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 27.7% during the third quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 43,174 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $7,033,000 after purchasing an additional 9,355 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB grew its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 747.3% in the third quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 21,275 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $3,466,000 after purchasing an additional 18,764 shares during the last quarter. Holistic Planning LLC purchased a new position in Marathon Petroleum during the 3rd quarter valued at about $912,000. Finally, World Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in Marathon Petroleum by 4,227.5% during the 3rd quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 69,759 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $11,364,000 after purchasing an additional 68,147 shares during the last quarter. 76.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Marathon Petroleum news, Director Jeffrey C. Campbell bought 6,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 4th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $149.61 per share, for a total transaction of $897,660.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 6,090 shares in the company, valued at approximately $911,124.90. This trade represents a 6,666.67 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on MPC. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $200.00 to $190.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 4th. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $170.00 price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $168.00 to $159.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 11th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $186.00 to $182.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Mizuho reduced their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $175.00 to $174.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Marathon Petroleum has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $181.20.

Marathon Petroleum Price Performance

MPC stock opened at $152.83 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 1.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $49.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.11, a PEG ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 1.42. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $147.76 and a 200-day moving average price of $159.21. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a 52-week low of $130.54 and a 52-week high of $221.11.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last released 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. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 16.19% and a net margin of 3.15%. The business had revenue of $35.37 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.34 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $8.14 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 9.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, November 5th that allows the company to buyback $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the oil and gas company to purchase up to 10% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Marathon Petroleum Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 20th were given a dividend of $0.91 per share. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.38%. This is an increase from Marathon Petroleum’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 20th. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio is 28.84%.

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.