Catalyst Financial Partners LLC Raises Stock Holdings in Marathon Petroleum Corporation $MPC

Key Points

• Catalyst Financial Partners LLC increased its Marathon Petroleum stake by 109% in the fourth quarter, ending with 9,097 shares valued at about $1.48 million.
• Marathon Petroleum reported a strong latest quarter, with EPS of $1.65 versus the $0.74 consensus and revenue of $34.2 billion, both topping expectations.
• The company announced a $1.00 quarterly dividend and continues to receive upbeat analyst support, including a BMO Capital price-target hike to $290 and an outperform rating.

Catalyst Financial Partners LLC raised its position in Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:MPC - Free Report) by 109.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 9,097 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after buying an additional 4,745 shares during the quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC's holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $1,480,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Boston Partners lifted its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 2.3% in the third quarter. Boston Partners now owns 6,305,428 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $1,214,522,000 after buying an additional 141,691 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 2.0% in the third quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 1,861,020 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $358,693,000 after buying an additional 35,847 shares during the last quarter. Amundi lifted its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 11.8% in the third quarter. Amundi now owns 1,626,862 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $314,830,000 after buying an additional 172,172 shares during the last quarter. National Pension Service lifted its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 1.7% in the third quarter. National Pension Service now owns 849,268 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $163,688,000 after buying an additional 14,308 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers lifted its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 1.8% in the third quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 669,237 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $128,989,000 after buying an additional 11,948 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.77% of the company's stock.

Marathon Petroleum Trading Down 1.1%

NYSE:MPC opened at $249.31 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $233.15 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $202.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $72.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.27, a PEG ratio of 0.34 and a beta of 0.53. 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 Corporation has a 1 year low of $154.65 and a 1 year high of $261.61.

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 firm 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%.Marathon Petroleum's revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted ($0.24) earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Marathon Petroleum Corporation will post 28.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MPC has been the subject of a number of research reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded Marathon Petroleum from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Sunday. Citigroup boosted their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $243.00 to $257.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. UBS Group set a $285.00 target price on Marathon Petroleum in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Zacks Research raised Marathon Petroleum from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $255.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $259.44.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Marathon Petroleum news, insider Ricky D. Hessling sold 1,626 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $228.18, for a total value of $371,020.68. Following the sale, the insider owned 7,525 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,717,054.50. This represents a 17.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders sold a total of 4,473 shares of company stock valued at $1,015,428 over the last quarter. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Key Headlines Impacting Marathon Petroleum

Here are the key news stories impacting Marathon Petroleum this week:

• Positive Sentiment: BMO Capital Markets raised its price target on Marathon Petroleum to $290 from $255 and kept an outperform rating, signaling higher expectations for the shares. BMO Capital Adjusts Price Target on Marathon Petroleum to 290 From 255, Maintains Outperform Rating
• Positive Sentiment: Marathon Petroleum recently reported a strong Q1 earnings beat, with refining margins improving and a newly announced $5 billion buyback adding support for shareholder returns. MPC Q1 Earnings Beat Estimates on Strong Refining Results
• Positive Sentiment: Higher crude and fuel market volatility tied to Middle East supply disruption is widening refining crack spreads, which can lift earnings for refiners like MPC that process discounted crude into more valuable gasoline and diesel. The Great SPR Arbitrage: An Oil Market Glitch Fuels Sector Gains
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts have been revisiting Marathon Petroleum’s fair value estimate, which was updated higher to $256.83 per share, reflecting evolving assumptions around oil and natural gas markets. How The Marathon Petroleum (MPC) Story Is Shifting As Analyst Views And Assumptions Evolve
• Neutral Sentiment: MPC is also drawing attention as a trending stock, suggesting investors are actively re-evaluating the name after the latest earnings and analyst updates. Is Trending Stock Marathon Petroleum Corporation (MPC) a Buy Now?
• Negative Sentiment: Any easing of geopolitical tensions, a drop in oil prices, or policy pushback against high fuel prices could compress refining margins and reduce the earnings tailwind for Marathon Petroleum.

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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