Ascent Wealth Partners LLC Acquires Shares of 9,105 Marathon Petroleum Corporation $MPC

Key Points

• Ascent Wealth Partners disclosed a new first-quarter stake in Marathon Petroleum, buying 9,105 shares valued at about $2.22 million.
• Marathon Petroleum’s latest earnings beat expectations, reporting $1.65 EPS versus $0.74 estimated and $34.2 billion in revenue, while revenue rose 8.5% year over year.
• The stock has been active near its highs, with shares up 2.3% to $312.74 and analysts maintaining a generally positive outlook, including a Moderate Buy consensus and an average price target of $283.56.

Ascent Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:MPC - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 9,105 shares of the oil and gas company's stock, valued at approximately $2,223,000.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC grew its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 30.9% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 4,988 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $696,000 after purchasing an additional 1,178 shares during the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP increased its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 38.3% in the 1st quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 26,697 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $3,889,000 after buying an additional 7,396 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 26.6% in the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,221 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $369,000 after buying an additional 466 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP bought a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the second quarter worth $8,505,000. Finally, AXA S.A. lifted its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 46.7% during the second quarter. AXA S.A. now owns 39,675 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $6,590,000 after acquiring an additional 12,639 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 76.77% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Michael A. Henschen II sold 6,336 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $268.82, for a total value of $1,703,243.52. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 16,900 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,543,058. This trade represents a 27.27% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.17% of the company's stock.

Marathon Petroleum Stock Up 2.3%

NYSE:MPC opened at $312.74 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $91.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.42 and a beta of 0.52. Marathon Petroleum Corporation has a twelve month low of $158.00 and a twelve month high of $313.15. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $262.34 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $227.34. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31.

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 for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.91. The company had revenue of $34.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.42 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 3.36% and a return on equity of 16.22%. Marathon Petroleum's revenue for the quarter was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned ($0.24) EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Marathon Petroleum Corporation will post 35.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 20th were given a $1.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 20th. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. Marathon Petroleum's payout ratio is presently 26.11%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $233.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, June 12th. Piper Sandler raised their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $197.00 to $228.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Zacks Research lowered Marathon Petroleum from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 17th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $335.00 price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Sunday, July 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $344.00 price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a research report on Monday, June 15th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Marathon Petroleum currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $283.56.

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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