Korea Investment CORP Increases Stock Position in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Korea Investment CORP increased its position in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 5.5% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 256,928 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after buying an additional 13,362 shares during the period. Korea Investment CORP’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $35,841,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 44.3% during the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 15,865 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $2,585,000 after purchasing an additional 4,868 shares during the period. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund purchased a new stake in Marathon Petroleum during the third quarter worth approximately $4,073,000. Vinva Investment Management Ltd increased its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 5.8% in the third quarter. Vinva Investment Management Ltd now owns 17,327 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $2,836,000 after acquiring an additional 953 shares in the last quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp raised its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 6.9% in the 3rd quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp now owns 28,477 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $4,639,000 after acquiring an additional 1,843 shares during the period. Finally, Captrust Financial Advisors lifted its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 10.2% during the 3rd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 89,122 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $14,519,000 after acquiring an additional 8,283 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.77% of the company’s stock.

Marathon Petroleum Trading Down 2.2 %

Marathon Petroleum stock opened at $144.05 on Friday. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a 52 week low of $130.54 and a 52 week high of $221.11. 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 $44.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.51, a P/E/G ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $148.74 and a 200 day moving average price of $151.59.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The oil and gas company reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.06 by $0.71. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 2.45% and a return on equity of 12.07%. The business had revenue of $33.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $31.94 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.98 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 8.47 EPS for the current year.

Marathon Petroleum Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 19th were paid a $0.91 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 19th. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.53%. Marathon Petroleum’s payout ratio is 36.66%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Marathon Petroleum news, insider Ricky D. Hessling purchased 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were bought at an average price of $134.72 per share, for a total transaction of $269,440.00. Following the purchase, the insider now directly owns 12,162 shares in the company, valued at $1,638,464.64. This trade represents a 19.68 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Evan Bayh acquired 1,000 shares of Marathon Petroleum stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $133.70 per share, with a total value of $133,700.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 69,305 shares in the company, valued at $9,266,078.50. The trade was a 1.46 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MPC has been the topic of several research reports. Raymond James reissued a “strong-buy” rating on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a research report on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $183.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $159.00 to $161.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Mizuho reduced their target price 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. Finally, Tudor Pickering raised shares of Marathon Petroleum from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Marathon Petroleum has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $180.21.

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.