Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) Reaches New 1-Year High After Analyst Upgrade

Key Points

• Marathon Petroleum reached a new 52-week high of $186.80 after Evercore ISI raised its price target from $170.00 to $210.00, indicating strong analyst support for the stock.
• Institutional investors have been actively increasing their stakes, with Vanguard Group increasing its holdings by 11.2% and Norges Bank entering a new position worth approximately $527 million.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.91, providing investors with a yield of 1.9%, reflecting its ongoing commitment to returning value to shareholders despite a 11.1% year-over-year decline in revenue.

Shares of Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:MPC - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high on Monday after Evercore ISI raised their price target on the stock from $170.00 to $210.00. Evercore ISI currently has an in-line rating on the stock. Marathon Petroleum traded as high as $186.78 and last traded at $186.80, with a volume of 151129 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $185.46.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Citigroup lifted their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $144.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Mizuho lifted their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $184.00 to $188.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, September 15th. Wolfe Research lowered Marathon Petroleum from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a report on Monday, July 14th. Dbs Bank upgraded shares of Marathon Petroleum to a "moderate buy" rating in a report on Monday, July 28th. Finally, TD Cowen reduced their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $190.00 to $182.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $192.50.

Insider Activity

In other Marathon Petroleum news, Director Kim K.W. Rucker sold 7,392 shares of Marathon Petroleum stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.00, for a total value of $1,293,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 18,944 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,315,200. The trade was a 28.07% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Molly R. Benson sold 10,879 shares of Marathon Petroleum stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.00, for a total value of $1,773,277.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 28,700 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,678,100. This represents a 27.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.25% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Marathon Petroleum

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 11.2% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 38,866,104 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $6,456,049,000 after buying an additional 3,924,713 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the second quarter worth about $527,197,000. Boston Partners grew its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 58.5% during the first quarter. Boston Partners now owns 5,448,514 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $791,274,000 after buying an additional 2,011,810 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 18.7% during the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 11,824,177 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $1,722,664,000 after buying an additional 1,862,674 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 14,969.1% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,540,963 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $224,503,000 after buying an additional 1,530,737 shares in the last quarter. 76.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Marathon Petroleum Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $56.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.79, a P/E/G ratio of 3.43 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $173.45 and a 200 day moving average price of $159.06.

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, 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 business had revenue of $34.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $31.70 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $4.12 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 11.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Marathon Petroleum Corporation will post 8.47 EPS for the current year.

Marathon Petroleum Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 20th were given a dividend of $0.91 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 20th. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. Marathon Petroleum's payout ratio is currently 54.01%.

Marathon Petroleum Company 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.