Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO) Shares Acquired by Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board

Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board increased its holdings in Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO - Free Report) by 70.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 68,864 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after acquiring an additional 28,350 shares during the period. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board's holdings in Marathon Oil were worth $1,834,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. HWG Holdings LP purchased a new position in shares of Marathon Oil in the second quarter valued at $26,000. Founders Capital Management boosted its stake in Marathon Oil by 100.0% during the second 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 during the period. Highbridge Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Marathon Oil during the second quarter valued at $29,000. Grove Bank & Trust boosted its stake in Marathon Oil by 77.4% during the second 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 during the period. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in Marathon Oil during the third quarter valued at $36,000. 77.24% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MRO has been the topic of several analyst reports. Citigroup decreased their price objective on Marathon Oil from $29.00 to $28.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 5th. UBS Group reduced their price target on Marathon Oil from $30.00 to $28.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Barclays reduced their price target on Marathon Oil from $35.00 to $34.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. StockNews.com assumed coverage on Marathon Oil in a report on Friday, November 15th. They set a "buy" rating on the stock. Finally, Susquehanna reduced their price target on Marathon Oil from $39.00 to $37.00 and set a "positive" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $30.94.

Marathon Oil Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of MRO traded up $0.17 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $28.92. The company had a trading volume of 3,670,420 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,934,037. 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 firm has a 50-day moving average price of $27.46 and a 200 day moving average price of $27.61. Marathon Oil Co. has a 52 week low of $21.81 and a 52 week high of $30.06. The company has a market capitalization of $16.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.34 and a beta of 2.16.

Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.63 by $0.01. The business 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 firm's quarterly revenue was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.77 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Marathon Oil Co. will post 2.34 EPS for the current year.

Marathon Oil Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a $0.11 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.52%. Marathon Oil's payout ratio is presently 18.88%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Dane E. Whitehead sold 52,008 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Patrick Wagner sold 36,094 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.84, for a total transaction of $1,040,950.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 104,735 shares of the company's stock, 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. In the last quarter, insiders sold 382,693 shares of company stock worth $10,964,251. Corporate 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.