Vanguard Group Inc. Raises Stake in Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:MPC)

Key Points

• Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:MPC) by 12.3%, now owning approximately 34.9 million shares valued at over $5 billion.
• Multiple brokerages have raised their price targets for Marathon Petroleum, with Citigroup estimating the target at $182 and Barclays at $189, indicating strong interest from analysts.
• Marathon Petroleum reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings of $3.96 per share, surpassing consensus estimates and generating revenues of $34.1 billion for the quarter.

Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:MPC - Free Report) by 12.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 34,941,391 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after buying an additional 3,834,501 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned 11.22% of Marathon Petroleum worth $5,090,611,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 3.7% during the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 4,982,348 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $725,878,000 after acquiring an additional 178,397 shares during the last quarter. Demars Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 12.8% during the 1st quarter. Demars Financial Group LLC now owns 4,713,595 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $686,724,000 after acquiring an additional 536,462 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 11.5% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,399,977 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $613,624,000 after purchasing an additional 452,043 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 14.0% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,937,348 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $549,260,000 after purchasing an additional 484,438 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,400,826 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $474,415,000 after purchasing an additional 88,901 shares in the last quarter. 76.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Marathon Petroleum Stock Down 0.3%

MPC traded down $0.56 during trading on Friday, hitting $160.95. The stock had a trading volume of 1,278,171 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,963,470. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 1.23. Marathon Petroleum Corporation has a twelve month low of $115.10 and a twelve month high of $183.10. The company has a market capitalization of $48.93 billion, a PE ratio of 23.88, a PEG ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 0.90. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $169.25 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $153.70.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The oil and gas company reported $3.96 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 net margin of 1.58% and a return on equity of 8.38%. The business's quarterly revenue was down 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $4.12 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Marathon Petroleum Corporation will post 8.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Marathon Petroleum Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 20th will be given a dividend of $0.91 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 20th. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. Marathon Petroleum's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 54.01%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the company. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $190.00 to $182.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Evercore ISI assumed coverage on Marathon Petroleum in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. They issued an "in-line" rating and a $170.00 price objective on the stock. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $175.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Raymond James Financial reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $200.00 price objective (up previously from $180.00) on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $144.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $185.29.

Insider Activity at Marathon Petroleum

In related news, Director Kim K.W. Rucker sold 7,392 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.00, for a total value of $1,293,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 18,944 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,315,200. The trade was a 28.07% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.21% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.