First Manhattan CO. LLC. Has $2.50 Million Stock Position in Marathon Petroleum Corporation $MPC

Key Points

• First Manhattan CO. LLC increased its stake in Marathon Petroleum Corporation by 38.6% during the first quarter, now holding 17,149 shares valued at approximately $2.5 million.
• Marathon Petroleum recently announced a $0.91 quarterly dividend, yielding 2.0% annually, with a payout ratio of 54.01%.
• Analysts have mixed ratings on Marathon Petroleum, with eight recommending a buy and eight a hold, and the average price target set at $185.29.

First Manhattan CO. LLC. grew its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:MPC - Free Report) by 38.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 17,149 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after purchasing an additional 4,772 shares during the period. First Manhattan CO. LLC.'s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $2,498,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in MPC. Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 1,546.2% during the first quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 214 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 201 shares during the period. Hughes Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the first quarter valued at approximately $32,000. WPG Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the first quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Decker Retirement Planning Inc. raised its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 1,621.4% during the first quarter. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. now owns 241 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 227 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.77% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on MPC. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $175.00 to $203.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Marathon Petroleum from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $175.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Evercore ISI assumed coverage on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. They set an "in-line" rating and a $170.00 target price for the company. Finally, Scotiabank restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $186.57.

Marathon Petroleum Stock Up 0.7%

Shares of MPC stock traded up $1.27 during trading on Friday, hitting $180.25. 1,696,253 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,719,427. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 1.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $54.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.74, a P/E/G ratio of 3.64 and a beta of 0.97. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $171.74 and its 200 day simple moving average is $156.19. Marathon Petroleum Corporation has a twelve month low of $115.10 and a twelve month high of $183.50.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The oil and gas company reported $3.96 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.22 by $0.74. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 8.38% and a net margin of 1.58%.The firm had revenue of $34.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $31.70 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $4.12 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was down 11.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Marathon Petroleum Corporation 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 Wednesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 20th will be given a dividend of $0.91 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 20th. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. Marathon Petroleum's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 54.01%.

Insider Transactions at Marathon Petroleum

In other news, insider Molly R. Benson sold 10,879 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.00, for a total value of $1,773,277.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 28,700 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,678,100. This represents a 27.49% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Kim K.W. Rucker sold 7,392 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.00, for a total transaction of $1,293,600.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 18,944 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,315,200. This trade represents a 28.07% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.21% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Marathon Petroleum

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.