Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 61,014 Shares of Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:MPC)

Principal Financial Group Inc. cut its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:MPC - Free Report) by 3.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,941,533 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after selling 61,014 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.62% of Marathon Petroleum worth $282,862,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Greatmark Investment Partners Inc. lifted its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Greatmark Investment Partners Inc. now owns 161,171 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $22,483,000 after buying an additional 5,476 shares during the last quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC increased its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 91,256 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $12,730,000 after buying an additional 2,892 shares during the period. Cambridge Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in Marathon Petroleum in the 4th quarter valued at $5,624,000. Good Steward Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the 1st quarter worth $346,000. Finally, New Age Alpha Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the 4th quarter worth $1,192,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.77% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Scotiabank decreased their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $169.00 to $147.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $141.00 to $159.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a "strong-buy" rating on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a research note on Monday, June 30th. Piper Sandler cut their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $160.00 to $156.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Evercore ISI started coverage on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. They issued an "in-line" rating and a $170.00 price target on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $176.13.

Marathon Petroleum Stock Performance

NYSE MPC traded down $2.46 during trading on Friday, hitting $172.01. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,135,939 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,712,989. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $159.64 and a 200 day moving average price of $148.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16. The firm has a market cap of $52.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 0.88. Marathon Petroleum Corporation has a 52 week low of $115.10 and a 52 week high of $183.31.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The oil and gas company reported ($0.24) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.40) by $0.16. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 8.89% and a net margin of 1.75%. The business had revenue of $31.85 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $28.91 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.58 earnings per share. Marathon Petroleum's revenue was down 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Marathon Petroleum Corporation will post 8.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 21st were given a $0.91 dividend. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.12%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 21st. Marathon Petroleum's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 51.20%.

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.