Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) Shares Purchased by Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc.

Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC - Free Report) by 27.7% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 43,174 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after purchasing an additional 9,355 shares during the quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $7,033,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Crewe Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the first quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Marathon Petroleum in the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. TruNorth Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Marathon Petroleum during the second quarter worth $35,000. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the 2nd quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Wellington Shields & Co. LLC bought a new position in Marathon Petroleum during the first quarter worth about $40,000. 76.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on MPC shares. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $200.00 price target on the stock. Tudor Pickering downgraded Marathon Petroleum from a "strong-buy" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Monday, September 9th. Bank of America began coverage on Marathon Petroleum in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $174.00 price objective on the stock. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $196.00 to $182.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $172.00 to $171.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Marathon Petroleum has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $185.07.

Marathon Petroleum Stock Performance

Marathon Petroleum stock traded down $0.73 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $157.41. The stock had a trading volume of 778,608 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,646,946. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a 52-week low of $140.98 and a 52-week high of $221.11. The firm's fifty day moving average is $159.23 and its two-hundred day moving average is $168.73. The company has a market capitalization of $50.59 billion, a PE ratio of 12.65, a P/E/G ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 1.38.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 5th. The oil and gas company reported $1.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.97 by $0.90. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 3.15% and a return on equity of 16.19%. The firm had revenue of $35.37 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.34 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $8.14 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 9.41 EPS for the current year.

Marathon Petroleum declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Tuesday, November 5th that permits the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the oil and gas company to repurchase up to 10% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Marathon Petroleum Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be given a dividend of $0.91 per share. This is a positive change from Marathon Petroleum's previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.31%. Marathon Petroleum's payout ratio is 26.15%.

Marathon Petroleum Company 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.