Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:MPC) Shares Purchased by Commonwealth Equity Services LLC

Key Points

• Commonwealth Equity Services LLC increased its stake in Marathon Petroleum Corporation by 6.2%, holding approximately $24.3 million worth of shares after acquiring additional shares in the first quarter.
• Several hedge funds have significantly increased their positions in Marathon Petroleum, with Demars Financial Group LLC raising its stake by an astounding 16,338.3% in the fourth quarter.
• Marathon Petroleum is currently facing mixed analyst ratings, with one analyst rating it a sell while nine others suggest a hold and eight recommend a buy, resulting in an average target price of $185.29.

Commonwealth Equity Services LLC lifted its stake in Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:MPC - Free Report) by 6.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 166,838 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after buying an additional 9,707 shares during the quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC owned approximately 0.05% of Marathon Petroleum worth $24,307,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of MPC. Beverly Hills Private Wealth LLC raised its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Beverly Hills Private Wealth LLC now owns 6,655 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $928,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares in the last quarter. Sunpointe LLC increased its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 5.1% in the 1st quarter. Sunpointe LLC now owns 1,681 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $245,000 after buying an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. raised its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 2.3% during the 1st quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. now owns 3,801 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $554,000 after buying an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. Southland Equity Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 6.2% in the 1st quarter. Southland Equity Partners LLC now owns 1,549 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $226,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Prudent Man Advisors LLC grew its position in Marathon Petroleum by 2.3% in the first quarter. Prudent Man Advisors LLC now owns 4,056 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $591,000 after acquiring an additional 91 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.77% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Marathon Petroleum

In other news, Director Kim K.W. Rucker sold 7,392 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.00, for a total transaction of $1,293,600.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 18,944 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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 accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.21% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on MPC. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $175.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Barclays raised their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $159.00 to $189.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Dbs Bank upgraded shares of Marathon Petroleum to a "moderate buy" rating in a research report on Monday, July 28th. Scotiabank reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Finally, Wolfe Research cut shares of Marathon Petroleum from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 14th. 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 stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $185.29.

Marathon Petroleum Trading Down 0.3%

NYSE:MPC traded down $0.56 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $160.95. The stock had a trading volume of 1,278,171 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,678,695. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $169.24 and a 200 day moving average of $153.63. The company has a market capitalization of $49.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.88, a PEG ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.90. Marathon Petroleum Corporation has a one year low of $115.10 and a one year high of $183.10. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The oil and gas company reported $3.96 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.22 by $0.74. The business had revenue of $34.10 billion during 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%. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $4.12 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Marathon Petroleum Corporation will post 8.47 EPS for the current year.

Marathon Petroleum Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 20th will be issued a $0.91 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 20th. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. Marathon Petroleum's payout ratio is currently 54.01%.

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.