Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) Hits New 12-Month High After Analyst Upgrade

Key Points

• Marathon Petroleum reached a new 52-week high after Goldman Sachs raised its price target from $376 to $472 and maintained a buy rating. The stock traded near $430, while analysts’ consensus rating remained “Moderate Buy” with an average target of $355.12.
• The company reported quarterly EPS of $17.73, beating expectations of $14.27, while revenue rose 53.5% year over year to $51.99 billion. Analysts expect full-year EPS of approximately $59.15.
• Marathon Petroleum paid a quarterly dividend of $1.00, equivalent to an annualized $4.00 and a 0.9% yield. Insiders sold 21,691 shares worth about $7.8 million over the past 90 days, while institutional investors own 76.77% of the stock.

Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:MPC - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high on Monday after The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on the stock from $376.00 to $472.00. The Goldman Sachs Group currently has a buy rating on the stock. Marathon Petroleum traded as high as $428.00 and last traded at $429.9040, with a volume of 9855388 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $424.89.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $224.00 to $260.00 in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $357.00 to $375.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $335.00 target price on Marathon Petroleum and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Sunday, July 12th. BMO Capital Markets restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a research report on Friday, June 12th. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $289.00 to $321.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $355.12.

Insider Activity at Marathon Petroleum

In related news, VP Erin M. Brzezinski sold 570 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $362.79, for a total transaction of $206,790.30. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 1,576 shares in the company, valued at $571,757.04. The trade was a 26.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Molly R. Benson sold 17,196 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $358.57, for a total transaction of $6,165,969.72. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 30,334 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,876,862.38. This represents a 36.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 21,691 shares of company stock valued at $7,780,127 over the last ninety days. 0.17% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Marathon Petroleum

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Energy Income Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the 2nd quarter valued at $4,912,000. Evolve Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the 2nd quarter valued at about $673,000. Railway Pension Investments Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the 2nd quarter valued at $3,886,000. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA increased its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 31.0% in the first quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 213,545 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $52,146,000 after purchasing an additional 50,521 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky grew its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 570.7% in the 1st quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 168,644 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $41,180,000 after buying an additional 143,500 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.77% of the company's stock.

Marathon Petroleum Trading Down 0.2%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 0.89. The company's fifty day moving average is $349.28 and its 200-day moving average is $281.46. The stock has a market cap of $123.84 billion, a PE ratio of 14.73, a PEG ratio of 0.13 and a beta of 0.53.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The oil and gas company reported $17.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $14.27 by $3.46. The business had revenue of $51.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $40.87 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 5.48% and a return on equity of 31.96%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 53.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.96 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Marathon Petroleum Corporation will post 59.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 19th were issued a $1.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 19th. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. Marathon Petroleum's dividend payout ratio is presently 13.75%.

About Marathon Petroleum

Marathon Petroleum Corporation NYSE: MPC is an integrated downstream energy company engaged primarily in refining, marketing and transporting petroleum products. The company converts crude oil and other feedstocks into gasoline, diesel and other transportation fuels, as well as asphalt, propane, petrochemical feedstocks and related products.

Marathon Petroleum operates a network of refineries in the United States and markets refined products through wholesale channels, branded retail locations and commercial customers.

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