Empowered Funds LLC Lowers Stock Position in Marathon Petroleum Corporation $MPC

Key Points

• Empowered Funds LLC cut its Marathon Petroleum position by 30% in the first quarter, selling 58,699 shares and retaining 137,103 shares valued at approximately $33.5 million. Institutional investors collectively own 76.77% of MPC.
• Marathon Petroleum reported strong quarterly results, with adjusted EPS of $1.65 versus estimates of $0.74 and revenue of $34.2 billion, up 8.5% year over year.
• MPC shares opened at $311.79, while analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating with an average price target of $298.69. The company also pays a quarterly dividend of $1.00, equivalent to a 1.3% annual yield.

Empowered Funds LLC trimmed its holdings in Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:MPC - Free Report) by 30.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 137,103 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after selling 58,699 shares during the quarter. Empowered Funds LLC's holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $33,478,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of MPC. Energy Income Partners LLC raised its position in Marathon Petroleum by 3.4% in the 1st quarter. Energy Income Partners LLC now owns 10,436 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $2,548,000 after purchasing an additional 344 shares during the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP grew its position in Marathon Petroleum by 16.1% during the 1st quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 203,952 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $49,801,000 after purchasing an additional 28,273 shares during the last quarter. Castleark Management LLC acquired a new position in Marathon Petroleum in the first quarter valued at $5,470,000. Gateway Wealth Partners LLC increased its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 104.8% in the first quarter. Gateway Wealth Partners LLC now owns 6,204 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $1,515,000 after purchasing an additional 3,175 shares during the period. Finally, OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp raised its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 20.8% in the first quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp now owns 29,191 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $7,128,000 after buying an additional 5,029 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.77% of the company's stock.

Marathon Petroleum Stock Up 0.8%

MPC stock opened at $311.79 on Tuesday. Marathon Petroleum Corporation has a one year low of $158.00 and a one year high of $326.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $91.02 billion, a PE ratio of 20.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.20 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 1.18. The company has a fifty day moving average of $269.70 and a 200-day moving average of $234.02.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The oil and gas company reported $1.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.91. The business 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%. The business's revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted ($0.24) earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Marathon Petroleum Corporation will post 43.19 EPS for the current year.

Marathon Petroleum Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 20th were issued a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 20th. Marathon Petroleum's payout ratio is currently 26.11%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on MPC shares. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $224.00 to $260.00 in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. Scotiabank upped their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $174.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a research note on Friday, June 12th. TD Cowen increased their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $315.00 to $357.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $235.00 to $257.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $298.69.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

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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