Baird Financial Group Inc. Reduces Holdings in Marathon Petroleum Corporation $MPC

Key Points

• Baird Financial Group Inc. reduced its stake in Marathon Petroleum Corporation by 3.8%, selling 3,061 shares and leaving them with 76,683 shares valued at approximately $11.17 million at the end of the quarter.
• Marathon Petroleum's recent quarterly earnings report showed an EPS of $3.96, exceeding analysts' expectations of $3.22, with reported revenues of $34.10 billion.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.91 per share, set to be paid on September 10th, with a current dividend yield of 2.0%.

Baird Financial Group Inc. trimmed its stake in Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:MPC - Free Report) by 3.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 76,683 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after selling 3,061 shares during the period. Baird Financial Group Inc.'s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $11,172,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC bought a new position in Marathon Petroleum in the 4th quarter worth $26,000. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 1,546.2% during the 1st quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 214 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 201 shares during the last quarter. Hughes Financial Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the 1st quarter valued at about $32,000. WPG Advisers LLC bought a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the 1st quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Decker Retirement Planning Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 1,621.4% during the 1st quarter. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. now owns 241 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 227 shares during the last quarter. 76.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Marathon Petroleum Price Performance

MPC traded up $0.41 on Monday, reaching $180.69. 527,353 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,570,635. The stock has a market cap of $54.93 billion, a PE ratio of 26.75, a P/E/G ratio of 3.64 and a beta of 0.97. Marathon Petroleum Corporation has a twelve month low of $115.10 and a twelve month high of $183.50. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $171.74 and its 200-day moving average price is $156.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.23 and a quick ratio of 0.71.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The oil and gas company reported $3.96 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.22 by $0.74. The company had revenue of $34.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.70 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 1.58% and a return on equity of 8.38%. Marathon Petroleum's revenue was down 11.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $4.12 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Marathon Petroleum Corporation will post 8.47 EPS for the current year.

Marathon Petroleum Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.91 per share. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 20th. Marathon Petroleum's dividend payout ratio is presently 54.01%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MPC has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Evercore ISI assumed coverage on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. They issued an "in-line" rating and a $170.00 price target for the company. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $160.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $182.00 to $205.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $159.00 to $189.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Finally, Wolfe Research downgraded shares of Marathon Petroleum from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $186.57.

Insider Activity at Marathon Petroleum

In related news, insider Molly R. Benson sold 10,879 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.00, for a total transaction of $1,773,277.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 28,700 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,678,100. This represents a 27.49% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Kim K.W. Rucker sold 7,392 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.00, for a total transaction of $1,293,600.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 18,944 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,315,200. The trade was a 28.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.25% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.