Vanguard Group Inc. Sells 52,760 Shares of Marathon Petroleum Corporation $MPC

Key Points

• Vanguard Group trimmed its stake by 52,760 shares (down 0.1%) to 38,291,917 shares, still owning about 12.74% of Marathon Petroleum valued at roughly $6.23 billion at quarter-end.
• Marathon reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results with EPS of $4.07 versus a $3.73 consensus and revenue of $32.57 billion versus $30.89 billion, while the stock trades near $224 and the company has a market cap around $66 billion.
• Insider Ricky D. Hessling sold 1,626 shares at an average price of $228.18 (a 17.8% drop in his holdings); insiders have sold 4,473 shares in the last three months and now own 0.17% of the company.

Vanguard Group Inc. lessened its holdings in Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:MPC - Free Report) by 0.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 38,291,917 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after selling 52,760 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 12.74% of Marathon Petroleum worth $6,227,414,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of MPC. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Marathon Petroleum by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC now owns 21,412 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $3,482,000 after buying an additional 95 shares during the period. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 377.7% in the 4th quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 72,692 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $11,822,000 after acquiring an additional 57,476 shares during the period. Diversified Enterprises LLC raised its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 59.6% in the 4th quarter. Diversified Enterprises LLC now owns 2,118 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $344,000 after acquiring an additional 791 shares in the last quarter. Quent Long Short Global Small Cap Fund LP purchased a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the 4th quarter worth $305,000. Finally, B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG lifted its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 117.3% during the 4th quarter. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG now owns 59,622 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $9,705,000 after purchasing an additional 32,179 shares during the last quarter. 76.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Marathon Petroleum

In other news, insider Ricky D. Hessling sold 1,626 shares of Marathon Petroleum stock in a transaction on Friday, March 13th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at approximately $1,717,054.50. The trade was a 17.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders have sold 4,473 shares of company stock worth $1,015,428 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.17% of the company's stock.

Marathon Petroleum Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MPC opened at $224.19 on Monday. Marathon Petroleum Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $133.00 and a fifty-two week high of $255.77. The company has a market cap of $66.02 billion, a PE ratio of 16.79, a P/E/G ratio of 0.37 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a current ratio of 1.26. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $222.98 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $198.07.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 3rd. The oil and gas company reported $4.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.73 by $0.34. The firm had revenue of $32.57 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $30.89 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 2.99% and a return on equity of 13.90%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.77 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Marathon Petroleum Corporation will post 23.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 18th were issued a $1.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 18th. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. Marathon Petroleum's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.96%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MPC has been the topic of several analyst reports. Weiss Ratings lowered Marathon Petroleum from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 19th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $200.00 to $233.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $239.00 to $264.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Mizuho boosted their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $205.00 to $224.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 17th. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $194.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $241.81.

Marathon Petroleum Company 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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