Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) Reaches New 1-Year Low - Here's What Happened

Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC - Get Free Report) shares reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $129.77 and last traded at $130.31, with a volume of 2106355 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $147.90.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on MPC shares. Tudor Pickering upgraded Marathon Petroleum from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Barclays increased their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $159.00 to $161.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, March 14th. Raymond James reaffirmed a "strong-buy" rating and issued a $193.00 price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. TD Cowen reissued a "buy" rating and set a $170.00 price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $183.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $180.29.

Marathon Petroleum Trading Up 2.9 %

The business's 50 day moving average price is $146.78 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $150.26. The company has a market capitalization of $38.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.51, a P/E/G ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94.

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Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The oil and gas company reported $0.77 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.06 by $0.71. The company had revenue of $33.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $31.94 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 2.45% and a return on equity of 12.07%. Marathon Petroleum's revenue for the quarter was down 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.98 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 8.47 earnings per share 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 paid a dividend of $0.91 per share. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.91%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 19th. Marathon Petroleum's dividend payout ratio is presently 36.66%.

Insider Activity at Marathon Petroleum

In other Marathon Petroleum news, insider Ricky D. Hessling bought 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were bought at an average price of $134.72 per share, for a total transaction of $269,440.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 12,162 shares in the company, valued at $1,638,464.64. This trade represents a 19.68 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Evan Bayh acquired 1,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was bought at an average price of $133.70 per share, for a total transaction of $133,700.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 69,305 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,266,078.50. This trade represents a 1.46 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Marathon Petroleum

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in MPC. Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC bought a new position in Marathon Petroleum in the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Asset Planning Inc purchased a new position in Marathon Petroleum in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Cape Investment Advisory Inc. increased its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 762.9% in the fourth quarter. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 302 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 267 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.77% of the company's stock.

About Marathon Petroleum

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.