Piper Sandler Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) Stock Price

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC - Free Report) had its target price lowered by Piper Sandler from $160.00 to $156.00 in a research note released on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a neutral rating on the oil and gas company's stock.

A number of other brokerages have also recently weighed in on MPC. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $182.00 to $183.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Raymond James upped their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $190.00 to $192.00 and gave the stock a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. TD Cowen restated a "buy" rating and set a $170.00 price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Tudor Pickering upgraded Marathon Petroleum from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $168.00 to $159.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $182.00.

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Marathon Petroleum Price Performance

Marathon Petroleum stock traded down $0.01 on Friday, reaching $137.54. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,044,725 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,509,499. Marathon Petroleum has a twelve month low of $130.54 and a twelve month high of $221.11. The company has a market cap of $42.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.84, a PEG ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 1.23. The business's fifty day moving average price is $148.61 and its 200 day moving average price is $154.16.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The oil and gas company reported $0.77 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.06 by $0.71. The company had revenue of $33.47 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $31.94 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 12.07% and a net margin of 2.45%. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.98 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Marathon Petroleum will post 8.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.91 per share. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.65%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 19th. Marathon Petroleum's dividend payout ratio is currently 36.66%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Evan Bayh purchased 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $133.70 per share, with a total value of $133,700.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 69,305 shares in the company, valued at $9,266,078.50. This trade represents a 1.46 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Marathon Petroleum

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of MPC. Gladius Capital Management LP purchased a new position in Marathon Petroleum in the 3rd quarter worth about $26,000. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 88.9% in the 3rd quarter. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC now owns 170 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC boosted its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 672.7% in the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 170 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Marathon Petroleum during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC bought a new position in Marathon Petroleum in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. 76.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.