Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:MPC) Given Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Analysts

Key Points

• Marathon Petroleum has a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating from 18 analysts, with 11 buy ratings and seven holds. The average 12-month price target is $298.69, though several analysts recently raised targets as high as $376.
• MPC opened at $316.25, near its 52-week high of $326.92, after rising above its 50-day and 200-day moving averages.
• The company reported quarterly EPS of $1.65, beating estimates of $0.74, while revenue rose 8.5% year over year to $34.20 billion. Marathon Petroleum also declared a quarterly dividend of $1.00 per share, equivalent to a 1.3% annual yield.

Shares of Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:MPC - Get Free Report) have been given a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" by the eighteen brokerages that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $298.6875.

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Piper Sandler reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $343.00 target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $291.00 to $376.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Scotiabank upped their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $174.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group set a $335.00 price target on Marathon Petroleum and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Sunday, July 12th. Finally, Raymond James Financial lifted their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $300.00 to $335.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 13th.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Michael A. Henschen II sold 6,336 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $268.82, for a total transaction of $1,703,243.52. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 16,900 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,543,058. This trade represents a 27.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Marathon Petroleum

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Marathon Petroleum during the fourth quarter valued at $472,312,000. Capital Wealth Planning LLC increased its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 49,392.0% in the 4th quarter. Capital Wealth Planning LLC now owns 1,498,124 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $245,157,000 after purchasing an additional 1,495,097 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 3,816.8% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 1,306,749 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $212,517,000 after purchasing an additional 1,273,386 shares in the last quarter. GHE LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 1,939.8% during the first quarter. GHE LLC now owns 649,542 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $158,605,000 after purchasing an additional 617,699 shares during the period. Finally, Man Group plc grew its position in Marathon Petroleum by 2,175.0% during the fourth quarter. Man Group plc now owns 568,790 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $92,502,000 after purchasing an additional 543,788 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.77% of the company's stock.

Marathon Petroleum Stock Down 0.1%

MPC opened at $316.25 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $92.33 billion, a PE ratio of 20.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.20 and a beta of 0.52. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $274.13 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $237.86. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31. Marathon Petroleum has a 52 week low of $158.00 and a 52 week high of $326.92.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The oil and gas company reported $1.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.91. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 3.36% and a return on equity of 16.22%. The firm had revenue of $34.20 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $33.42 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.24) EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Marathon Petroleum will post 43.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 19th will be given a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 19th. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. Marathon Petroleum's payout ratio is currently 26.11%.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.