Trexquant Investment LP Purchases 398,085 Shares of Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO)

Trexquant Investment LP boosted its stake in Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO - Free Report) by 1,045.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 436,153 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after purchasing an additional 398,085 shares during the period. Trexquant Investment LP owned about 0.07% of Marathon Oil worth $10,537,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Marathon Oil by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 26,569 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $711,000 after acquiring an additional 421 shares during the period. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. increased its position in shares of Marathon Oil by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. now owns 23,631 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $571,000 after buying an additional 477 shares in the last quarter. Level Four Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in shares of Marathon Oil by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Level Four Advisory Services LLC now owns 29,384 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $710,000 after buying an additional 487 shares during the last quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of Marathon Oil by 6.8% in the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 7,770 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $188,000 after buying an additional 494 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust grew its stake in Marathon Oil by 12.1% in the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 4,878 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $118,000 after acquiring an additional 528 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.24% of the company's stock.

Marathon Oil Trading Down 0.6 %

MRO stock traded down $0.16 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $26.30. 5,068,604 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 9,389,836. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.83 billion, a PE ratio of 10.87 and a beta of 2.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.48. The business's 50 day moving average price is $27.53 and its 200-day moving average price is $25.27. Marathon Oil Co. has a 52-week low of $21.81 and a 52-week high of $30.06.

Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The oil and gas producer reported $0.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.52 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $1.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.56 billion. Marathon Oil had a return on equity of 13.24% and a net margin of 21.83%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.67 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Marathon Oil Co. will post 2.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Marathon Oil Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.11 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 14th. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.67%. Marathon Oil's payout ratio is 18.18%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Mizuho upped their price target on shares of Marathon Oil from $31.00 to $33.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, May 13th. Raymond James reduced their price objective 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. Benchmark reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $32.00 price objective on shares of Marathon Oil in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. Scotiabank boosted their target price on shares of Marathon Oil from $35.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $33.00 price target on shares of Marathon Oil in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $33.14.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Dane E. Whitehead sold 73,233 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.06, for a total transaction of $1,981,684.98. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 152,008 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,113,336.48. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Marathon Oil news, VP Michael A. Henderson sold 51,389 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.59, for a total value of $1,417,822.51. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 114,828 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,168,104.52. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Dane E. Whitehead sold 73,233 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.06, for a total value of $1,981,684.98. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 152,008 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,113,336.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 281,332 shares of company stock valued at $7,644,903. Company insiders own 0.35% of the company's stock.

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.