Empowered Funds LLC Has $6.45 Million Holdings in Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO)

Empowered Funds LLC lowered its position in Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO - Free Report) by 49.1% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 242,247 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after selling 233,569 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC's holdings in Marathon Oil were worth $6,451,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. HWG Holdings LP purchased a new stake in Marathon Oil in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Founders Capital Management lifted its stake in Marathon Oil by 100.0% in the 2nd quarter. Founders Capital Management now owns 1,000 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. Highbridge Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Marathon Oil in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Grove Bank & Trust lifted its stake in Marathon Oil by 77.4% in the 2nd quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 1,066 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 465 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in Marathon Oil in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.24% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MRO has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Scotiabank upped their target price on Marathon Oil from $27.61 to $28.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Susquehanna dropped their price objective on Marathon Oil from $39.00 to $37.00 and set a "positive" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. Truist Financial lowered their price target on Marathon Oil from $35.00 to $27.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, September 30th. Mizuho lowered their target price on Marathon Oil from $34.00 to $32.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their target price on Marathon Oil from $34.00 to $37.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. Nine 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 company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $31.12.

Insider Activity at Marathon Oil

In related news, insider Dane E. Whitehead sold 52,008 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.50, for a total value of $1,430,220.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 100,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,750,000. This trade represents a 34.21 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Michael A. Henderson sold 38,000 shares of Marathon Oil stock in a transaction on Friday, September 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.21, for a total transaction of $1,033,980.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 76,828 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,090,489.88. This trade represents a 33.09 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.35% of the company's stock.

Marathon Oil Stock Performance

NYSE MRO traded down $0.15 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $28.59. The company's stock had a trading volume of 5,087,537 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,697,123. The company has a current ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $27.36 and a 200 day simple moving average of $27.56. Marathon Oil Co. has a 52 week low of $21.81 and a 52 week high of $30.06. The stock has a market cap of $15.99 billion, a PE ratio of 12.27 and a beta of 2.16.

Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.63 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $1.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.70 billion. Marathon Oil had a return on equity of 12.80% and a net margin of 19.73%. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.77 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Marathon Oil Co. will post 2.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Oil Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Investors 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 1.54%. Marathon Oil's dividend payout ratio is presently 18.88%.

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.