70,535 Shares in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) Purchased by Caxton Associates LP

Caxton Associates LP bought a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 70,535 shares of the oil and gas company's stock, valued at approximately $9,840,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of MPC. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Asset Planning Inc purchased a new stake in Marathon Petroleum in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new position in Marathon Petroleum in the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 762.9% during the fourth quarter. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 302 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 267 shares during the last quarter. Finally, OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the fourth quarter worth about $44,000. 76.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on MPC. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $185.00 to $175.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $175.00 to $160.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Tudor Pickering raised shares of Marathon Petroleum from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Raymond James reduced their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $193.00 to $183.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $160.00 to $156.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $172.93.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Marathon Petroleum Price Performance

MPC traded up $0.15 on Wednesday, hitting $144.70. 3,135,236 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,706,969. The business's fifty day moving average is $136.85 and its 200 day moving average is $145.26. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a fifty-two week low of $115.10 and a fifty-two week high of $184.72. 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 $45.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 0.87.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 6th. The oil and gas company reported ($0.24) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.40) by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $31.85 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $28.91 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 12.07% and a net margin of 2.45%. Marathon Petroleum's revenue was down 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.58 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 8.47 EPS for the current year.

Marathon Petroleum Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 21st will be issued a $0.91 dividend. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.52%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 21st. Marathon Petroleum's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.66%.

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.