132,822 Shares in Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO) Bought by International Assets Investment Management LLC

International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 132,822 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock, valued at approximately $3,209,000.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of MRO. TradeLink Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Marathon Oil during the 1st quarter worth about $781,000. D.A. Davidson & CO. purchased a new position in shares of Marathon Oil in the 1st quarter valued at about $209,000. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can increased its holdings in shares of Marathon Oil by 6.9% in the 1st quarter. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can now owns 160,065 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $4,192,000 after acquiring an additional 10,388 shares during the last quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Marathon Oil in the 1st quarter valued at about $206,000. Finally, Cibc World Market Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Marathon Oil by 7.4% in the 1st quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 187,679 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $4,713,000 after acquiring an additional 12,859 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.24% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Marathon Oil news, insider Patrick Wagner sold 36,094 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.65, for a total transaction of $997,999.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 140,829 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,893,921.85. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, CEO Lee M. Tillman sold 80,647 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.94, for a total transaction of $2,172,630.18. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 596,330 shares in the company, valued at $16,065,130.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Patrick Wagner sold 36,094 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.65, for a total value of $997,999.10. Following the sale, the insider now owns 140,829 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,893,921.85. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 281,332 shares of company stock valued at $7,644,903. Corporate insiders own 0.42% of the company's stock.

Marathon Oil Price Performance

NYSE MRO traded down $0.29 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $27.39. The stock had a trading volume of 9,244,579 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,923,243. Marathon Oil Co. has a 52-week low of $21.63 and a 52-week high of $30.06. The company has a market cap of $15.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.70 and a beta of 2.22. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $26.13 and a 200 day simple moving average of $25.34. The company has a quick ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30.

Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 22nd. The oil and gas producer reported $0.69 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.62 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $1.69 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.66 billion. Marathon Oil had a return on equity of 14.09% and a net margin of 23.20%. Marathon Oil's revenue was down 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.88 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Marathon Oil Co. will post 2.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Oil Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 21st were given a dividend of $0.11 per share. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.61%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 20th. Marathon Oil's payout ratio is 17.19%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on MRO. UBS Group decreased their target price on Marathon Oil from $28.00 to $27.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Piper Sandler decreased their price objective on Marathon Oil from $34.00 to $32.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on Marathon Oil from $39.00 to $36.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Benchmark increased their price objective on Marathon Oil from $25.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 13th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $33.00 price objective on shares of Marathon Oil in a research report on Tuesday, March 5th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Marathon Oil currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $32.66.

Marathon Oil Profile

Marathon Oil Corporation, an independent exploration and production company, engages in exploration, production, and marketing of crude oil and condensate, natural gas liquids, and natural gas in the United States and internationally. The company also produces and markets products manufactured from natural gas, such as liquefied natural gas and methanol.