Boston Partners Raises Holdings in Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:MPC)

Key Points

• Boston Partners increased their stake in Marathon Petroleum Corporation by 58.5%, now holding 5,448,514 shares valued at approximately $791 million.
• Marathon Petroleum recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.91, representing a 2.3% dividend yield with a payout ratio of 54.01%.
• The company reported earnings per share of $3.96 for the last quarter, surpassing analysts' expectations of $3.22, although revenue saw a 11.1% decline year-over-year.

Boston Partners raised its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:MPC - Free Report) by 58.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 5,448,514 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after acquiring an additional 2,011,810 shares during the quarter. Marathon Petroleum makes up 1.0% of Boston Partners' investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest holding. Boston Partners owned about 1.77% of Marathon Petroleum worth $791,274,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 1,546.2% in 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 purchased a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the 1st quarter valued at about $32,000. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 1,621.4% in 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. Finally, Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the 1st quarter valued at about $35,000. 76.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Kim K.W. Rucker sold 7,392 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction 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 owned 18,944 shares in the company, valued at $3,315,200. This trade represents a 28.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.21% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Marathon Petroleum Price Performance

NYSE MPC traded up $0.09 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $162.41. The stock had a trading volume of 1,831,442 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,747,931. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $169.42 and a 200 day simple moving average of $154.04. The company has a market cap of $49.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.10, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. Marathon Petroleum Corporation has a 52-week low of $115.10 and a 52-week high of $183.10.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The oil and gas company reported $3.96 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.22 by $0.74. The firm had revenue of $34.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $31.70 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 8.38% and a net margin of 1.58%. Marathon Petroleum's quarterly revenue was down 11.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $4.12 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Marathon Petroleum Corporation will post 8.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.91 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 20th. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. Marathon Petroleum's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 54.01%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on MPC. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $160.00 to $182.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Mizuho upped their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $168.00 to $184.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Wall Street Zen raised Marathon Petroleum from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $200.00 price objective (up from $180.00) on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $159.00 to $189.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $185.29.

Marathon Petroleum Company 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.