Yousif Capital Management LLC Decreases Stock Position in Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO)

Yousif Capital Management LLC lowered its holdings in Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO - Free Report) by 40.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 83,681 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after selling 57,711 shares during the period. Yousif Capital Management LLC's holdings in Marathon Oil were worth $2,022,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Oak Thistle LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Marathon Oil during the fourth quarter worth $1,440,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its holdings in shares of Marathon Oil by 57.4% during the third quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 607,336 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $16,246,000 after acquiring an additional 221,388 shares in the last quarter. LSV Asset Management raised its holdings in shares of Marathon Oil by 3.3% during the third quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 4,692,600 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $125,527,000 after acquiring an additional 150,440 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Marathon Oil during the fourth quarter worth $3,209,000. Finally, Ardevora Asset Management LLP raised its holdings in shares of Marathon Oil by 20.4% during the fourth quarter. Ardevora Asset Management LLP now owns 449,551 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $10,861,000 after acquiring an additional 76,210 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.24% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on MRO shares. Raymond James lowered their price target on Marathon Oil from $35.00 to $32.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. Barclays started coverage on Marathon Oil in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $35.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Marathon Oil from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Truist Financial lifted their target price on Marathon Oil from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Finally, Mizuho lifted their target price on Marathon Oil from $28.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $32.66.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Marathon Oil news, VP Michael A. Henderson sold 51,389 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.59, for a total transaction of $1,417,822.51. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 114,828 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,168,104.52. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Marathon Oil news, CEO Lee M. Tillman sold 80,647 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.94, for a total transaction of $2,172,630.18. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 596,330 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,065,130.20. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Michael A. Henderson sold 51,389 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.59, for a total transaction of $1,417,822.51. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 114,828 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,168,104.52. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 281,332 shares of company stock valued at $7,644,903. 0.35% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Marathon Oil Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MRO traded down $0.01 during trading on Thursday, reaching $26.09. The stock had a trading volume of 14,809,486 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,774,967. Marathon Oil Co. has a 52 week low of $21.63 and a 52 week high of $30.06. The business's 50-day moving average price is $26.94 and its 200 day moving average price is $25.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.40 and a quick ratio of 0.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.91 billion, a PE ratio of 10.27 and a beta of 2.22.

Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The oil and gas producer reported $0.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.52 by $0.03. Marathon Oil had a net margin of 23.20% and a return on equity of 14.09%. The company had revenue of $1.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.56 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.67 earnings per share. Marathon Oil's quarterly revenue was down 7.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Marathon Oil Co. will post 2.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Marathon Oil Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.11 per share. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.69%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 14th. Marathon Oil's dividend payout ratio is 17.19%.

Marathon Oil Company 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.