AlphaQuest LLC Boosts Stake in Marathon Petroleum Corporation $MPC

Key Points

• AlphaQuest LLC sharply increased its stake in Marathon Petroleum, boosting holdings by 3,764.9% in the fourth quarter to 8,812 shares valued at about $1.43 million.
• Wall Street sentiment remains positive, with analysts assigning a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $268.50 for MPC, despite one recent downgrade from Weiss Ratings.
• Marathon Petroleum posted strong quarterly results, beating EPS and revenue estimates with $1.65 per share and $34.2 billion in revenue, while also announcing a quarterly dividend of $1.00 per share.

AlphaQuest LLC raised its holdings in Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:MPC - Free Report) by 3,764.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 8,812 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after purchasing an additional 8,584 shares during the quarter. AlphaQuest LLC's holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $1,433,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MPC. Alberta Investment Management Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the 3rd quarter valued at $2,891,000. Diversified Trust Co. raised its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 39.3% in the 4th quarter. Diversified Trust Co. now owns 15,675 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $2,549,000 after buying an additional 4,419 shares during the period. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the 3rd quarter valued at $1,004,000. KKM Financial LLC raised its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 27.6% in the 3rd quarter. KKM Financial LLC now owns 26,202 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $5,050,000 after buying an additional 5,661 shares during the period. Finally, USA Financial Formulas purchased a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the 4th quarter valued at $791,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.77% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on MPC. Weiss Ratings downgraded Marathon Petroleum from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. UBS Group set a $285.00 target price on Marathon Petroleum in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $264.00 to $291.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Scotiabank boosted their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $174.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Raymond James Financial reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Marathon Petroleum has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $268.50.

Marathon Petroleum Trading Down 0.3%

NYSE:MPC opened at $247.21 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $239.64 and a 200-day simple moving average of $207.01. The stock has a market cap of $72.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.14, a P/E/G ratio of 0.32 and a beta of 0.53. Marathon Petroleum Corporation has a 1 year low of $155.93 and a 1 year high of $264.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 1.18.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The oil and gas company reported $1.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.91. The business had revenue of $34.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $33.42 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 16.22% and a net margin of 3.36%.The business's quarterly revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.24) EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Marathon Petroleum Corporation will post 29.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 20th will be given a $1.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 20th. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. Marathon Petroleum's dividend payout ratio is 26.11%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Ricky D. Hessling sold 1,626 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $228.18, for a total value of $371,020.68. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 7,525 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,717,054.50. This represents a 17.77% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 4,473 shares of company stock valued at $1,015,428. 0.17% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Marathon Petroleum

Marathon Petroleum Corporation NYSE: MPC is a U.S.-based downstream energy company engaged principally in the refining, marketing, supply and transportation of petroleum products. The company was formed through a spin-off from Marathon Oil in 2011 and operates an integrated system of refining and logistics assets that support the production and distribution of transportation fuels and other refined petroleum products.

Marathon Petroleum's operations include refining crude oil into gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, asphalt and other specialty products, as well as managing the distribution and storage infrastructure needed to move those products to market.

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