Zacks Research Reduces Earnings Estimates for Marathon Oil

Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO - Free Report) - Research analysts at Zacks Research decreased their FY2024 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of Marathon Oil in a research report issued on Tuesday, November 19th. Zacks Research analyst N. Choudhury now forecasts that the oil and gas producer will earn $2.32 per share for the year, down from their prior forecast of $2.37. The consensus estimate for Marathon Oil's current full-year earnings is $2.34 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Marathon Oil's Q4 2024 earnings at $0.50 EPS, Q1 2025 earnings at $0.52 EPS, Q2 2025 earnings at $0.50 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $0.57 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $0.50 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $2.09 EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at $0.38 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $0.42 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $1.73 EPS.

Several other analysts have also recently commented on the company. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on Marathon Oil from $37.00 to $34.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. UBS Group decreased their price target on Marathon Oil from $30.00 to $28.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. Barclays reduced their price objective on Marathon Oil from $35.00 to $34.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Citigroup reduced their price objective on Marathon Oil from $29.00 to $28.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. Finally, StockNews.com assumed coverage on Marathon Oil in a research note on Friday, November 15th. They set a "buy" rating for the company. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $30.94.

Marathon Oil Stock Performance

Shares of Marathon Oil stock traded down $0.46 on Thursday, reaching $28.47. 10,538,367 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,058,358. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a current ratio of 0.69. The company's 50-day moving average is $27.52 and its two-hundred day moving average is $27.62. The firm has a market cap of $15.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.41 and a beta of 2.16. Marathon Oil has a 1-year low of $21.81 and a 1-year high of $30.06.

Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.63 by $0.01. Marathon Oil had a return on equity of 12.80% and a net margin of 19.73%. The firm had revenue of $1.79 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.70 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.77 earnings per share. Marathon Oil's revenue for the quarter was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis.

Marathon Oil Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.11 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.55%. Marathon Oil's dividend payout ratio is 18.88%.

Insider Transactions at Marathon Oil

In other Marathon Oil news, VP Michael A. Henderson sold 38,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.21, for a total value of $1,033,980.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 76,828 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,090,489.88. This represents a 33.09 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Patrick Wagner sold 36,094 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.84, for a total transaction of $1,040,950.96. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 104,735 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,020,557.40. The trade was a 25.63 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 382,693 shares of company stock worth $10,964,251 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.35% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Marathon Oil

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Blair William & Co. IL increased its stake in Marathon Oil by 5.5% in the first quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 15,654 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $444,000 after purchasing an additional 812 shares in the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. increased its stake in Marathon Oil by 39.1% in the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 57,814 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $1,639,000 after purchasing an additional 16,249 shares in the last quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co increased its stake in Marathon Oil by 0.9% in the first quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 231,530 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $6,563,000 after purchasing an additional 2,062 shares in the last quarter. Natixis increased its stake in Marathon Oil by 12.7% in the first quarter. Natixis now owns 58,956 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $1,671,000 after purchasing an additional 6,659 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Axxcess Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Marathon Oil in the first quarter valued at $611,000. Institutional investors own 77.24% 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.