Marathon Petroleum Corporation $MPC Shares Purchased by Gabelli Funds LLC

Key Points

• Gabelli Funds LLC increased its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 15.6% in the fourth quarter, buying an additional 31,200 shares and bringing its total holding to 230,900 shares worth about $37.6 million.
• Wall Street sentiment on MPC remains constructive, with several firms raising price targets; the stock now carries a Moderate Buy consensus and a consensus target of $259.44.
• Marathon Petroleum reported strong first-quarter results, earning $1.65 per share versus expectations of $0.74 and posting revenue of $34.2 billion, while also announcing a quarterly dividend of $1.00 per share.

Gabelli Funds LLC boosted its holdings in Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:MPC - Free Report) by 15.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 230,900 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after acquiring an additional 31,200 shares during the quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC owned 0.08% of Marathon Petroleum worth $37,551,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Navalign LLC acquired a new stake in Marathon Petroleum in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in Marathon Petroleum in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp acquired a new stake in Marathon Petroleum in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $39,000. IAG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Marathon Petroleum in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Finally, WFA of San Diego LLC acquired a new stake in Marathon Petroleum in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $33,000. 76.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on MPC shares. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $255.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $264.00 to $291.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $235.00 to $257.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Mizuho increased their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $205.00 to $224.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $200.00 to $233.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $259.44.

Marathon Petroleum Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MPC opened at $255.16 on Monday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $234.57 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $203.50. 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 firm has a market cap of $74.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.66, a PEG ratio of 0.33 and a beta of 0.53. 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 issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The oil and gas company reported $1.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.91. The firm had revenue of $34.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $33.42 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 16.22% and a net margin of 3.36%.The firm's quarterly revenue was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted ($0.24) EPS. Research analysts forecast that Marathon Petroleum Corporation will post 29.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 20th will be paid a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 20th. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.6%. Marathon Petroleum's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.11%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marathon Petroleum

In other news, insider Ricky D. Hessling sold 1,626 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $228.18, for a total transaction of $371,020.68. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 7,525 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,717,054.50. This trade represents a 17.77% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Over the last three months, insiders sold 4,473 shares of company stock worth $1,015,428. Company insiders own 0.17% of the company's stock.

Marathon Petroleum Profile

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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