Cullen Investment Group LTD. Makes New Investment in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Cullen Investment Group LTD. bought a new position in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 45,437 shares of the oil and gas company's stock, valued at approximately $6,741,000. Marathon Petroleum comprises about 1.2% of Cullen Investment Group LTD.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest position.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Gleason Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 75.2% during the 3rd quarter. Gleason Group Inc. now owns 191 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 82 shares in the last quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners purchased a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the 4th quarter valued at about $40,000. Mascoma Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the 3rd quarter valued at about $43,000. Finally, Peoples Bank KS purchased a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the 3rd quarter valued at about $44,000. 76.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Kim K.W. Rucker sold 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.35, for a total transaction of $170,350.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 23,446 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,994,026.10. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.21% of the company's stock.

Marathon Petroleum Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE MPC traded down $1.75 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $207.02. 2,581,594 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,882,989. The stock has a market capitalization of $74.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 1.52. The company has a current ratio of 1.59, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. The company's 50 day moving average price is $186.34 and its 200 day moving average price is $163.37. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a 12 month low of $104.32 and a 12 month high of $221.11.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The oil and gas company reported $3.98 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $1.77. The firm had revenue of $36.26 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.90 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 30.58% and a net margin of 6.44%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 8.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $6.65 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 17.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 21st were given a dividend of $0.825 per share. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 20th. Marathon Petroleum's dividend payout ratio is currently 14.02%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $175.00 to $207.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday. Citigroup initiated coverage on Marathon Petroleum in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. They issued a "neutral" rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $172.00 to $186.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, April 1st. Raymond James boosted their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $214.00 to $227.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $193.77.

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.