Norges Bank Buys New Shares in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 3,250,371 shares of the oil and gas company's stock, valued at approximately $453,427,000. Norges Bank owned about 1.01% of Marathon Petroleum at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. SWS Partners lifted its position in Marathon Petroleum by 19.0% during the fourth quarter. SWS Partners now owns 17,577 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $2,452,000 after acquiring an additional 2,806 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 1,204.8% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 543,062 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $75,757,000 after purchasing an additional 501,441 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB grew its holdings in Marathon Petroleum by 747.3% in the 3rd quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 21,275 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $3,466,000 after buying an additional 18,764 shares in the last quarter. Greatmark Investment Partners Inc. increased its position in Marathon Petroleum by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Greatmark Investment Partners Inc. now owns 161,171 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $22,483,000 after buying an additional 5,476 shares during the period. Finally, TCTC Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 91,256 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $12,730,000 after buying an additional 2,892 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.77% of the company's stock.

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Insider Buying and Selling at Marathon Petroleum

In other news, insider Ricky D. Hessling purchased 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $134.72 per share, for a total transaction of $269,440.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 12,162 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,638,464.64. This trade represents a 19.68 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Evan Bayh acquired 1,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $133.70 per share, with a total value of $133,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 69,305 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,266,078.50. This trade represents a 1.46 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.21% of the company's stock.

Marathon Petroleum Trading Up 0.6 %

Marathon Petroleum stock traded up $0.89 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $147.52. The stock had a trading volume of 622,542 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,637,350. The stock has a market cap of $45.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.86, a P/E/G ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $148.52 and its 200-day simple moving average is $151.23. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a one year low of $130.54 and a one year high of $221.11.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The oil and gas company reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.06 by $0.71. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 2.45% and a return on equity of 12.07%. The business had revenue of $33.47 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $31.94 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.98 EPS. The firm's revenue was down 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 8.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 19th were given a dividend of $0.91 per share. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.47%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 19th. Marathon Petroleum's dividend payout ratio is currently 36.66%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MPC has been the topic of several research reports. Raymond James restated a "strong-buy" rating on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Tudor Pickering raised Marathon Petroleum from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Mizuho dropped their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $175.00 to $174.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $159.00 to $161.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Finally, Piper Sandler reduced their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $160.00 to $156.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $180.21.

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.