Man Group plc Sells 6,984 Shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Man Group plc lessened its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC - Free Report) by 31.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 15,261 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after selling 6,984 shares during the period. Man Group plc's holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $2,129,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 78.1% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 9,961,503 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $1,389,630,000 after purchasing an additional 4,367,774 shares during the period. Demars Financial Group LLC raised its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 16,338.3% during the 4th quarter. Demars Financial Group LLC now owns 4,177,133 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $582,710,000 after purchasing an additional 4,151,722 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Marathon Petroleum during the 4th quarter valued at $453,427,000. Boston Partners raised its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 37.4% during the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,436,704 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $480,501,000 after purchasing an additional 935,042 shares during the period. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 22.3% during the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,552,655 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $495,595,000 after purchasing an additional 647,045 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.77% of the company's stock.

Marathon Petroleum Stock Performance

Shares of Marathon Petroleum stock traded up $3.75 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $162.86. The company had a trading volume of 1,231,000 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,704,926. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $141.77 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $145.97. The stock has a market cap of $50.03 billion, a PE ratio of 16.41, a P/E/G ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 1.23 and a quick ratio of 0.76. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a 1-year low of $115.10 and a 1-year high of $183.31.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The oil and gas company reported ($0.24) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.40) by $0.16. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 2.45% and a return on equity of 12.07%. The firm had revenue of $31.85 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $28.91 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.58 earnings per share. The business's revenue was down 4.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 8.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 21st will be paid a $0.91 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 21st. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.24%. Marathon Petroleum's dividend payout ratio is presently 51.20%.

Insider Activity

In other Marathon Petroleum news, insider Ricky D. Hessling purchased 2,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $134.72 per share, with a total value of $269,440.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 12,162 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,638,464.64. This represents a 19.68% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Evan Bayh purchased 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $133.70 per share, with a total value of $133,700.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 69,305 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,266,078.50. The trade was a 1.46% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.21% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Mizuho boosted their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $168.00 to $184.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $175.00 to $160.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Tudor Pickering raised shares of Marathon Petroleum from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $142.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, Scotiabank dropped their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $169.00 to $147.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $175.29.

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.