National Pension Service Acquires 25,518 Shares of Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO)

National Pension Service boosted its stake in shares of Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO - Free Report) by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,082,770 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after buying an additional 25,518 shares during the period. National Pension Service owned about 0.19% of Marathon Oil worth $28,834,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Marathon Oil by 9.9% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 75,751,369 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $2,146,794,000 after buying an additional 6,835,604 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Marathon Oil by 13.1% in the 2nd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 13,369,821 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $383,313,000 after purchasing an additional 1,552,210 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Marathon Oil by 4.0% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 8,461,323 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $242,582,000 after purchasing an additional 328,184 shares in the last quarter. LSV Asset Management boosted its holdings in shares of Marathon Oil by 10.1% during the second quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 6,443,713 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $184,741,000 after purchasing an additional 593,100 shares during the period. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Marathon Oil by 1.0% during the second quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,786,956 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $79,902,000 after purchasing an additional 27,495 shares during the period. 77.24% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Marathon Oil Stock Performance

Shares of MRO traded down $0.06 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $28.49. 3,457,826 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 8,036,851. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a current ratio of 0.57. The stock's fifty day moving average is $27.26 and its 200 day moving average is $27.52. Marathon Oil Co. has a 1-year low of $21.81 and a 1-year high of $30.06. The stock has a market cap of $15.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.17 and a beta of 2.16.

Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.03. Marathon Oil had a return on equity of 12.87% and a net margin of 19.73%. The firm had revenue of $1.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.70 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.77 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Marathon Oil Co. will post 2.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Oil Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a $0.11 dividend. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.54%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. Marathon Oil's dividend payout ratio is 18.88%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on MRO. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of Marathon Oil from $29.00 to $28.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Marathon Oil from $35.00 to $34.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Marathon Oil from $29.00 to $27.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Marathon Oil from $33.00 to $30.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. Finally, Scotiabank raised their price objective 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. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $31.12.

Insider Transactions at Marathon Oil

In related news, VP Michael A. Henderson sold 38,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.21, for a total value of $1,033,980.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 76,828 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,090,489.88. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Marathon Oil news, VP Michael A. Henderson sold 38,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, September 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.21, for a total value of $1,033,980.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 76,828 shares in the company, valued at $2,090,489.88. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Dane E. Whitehead sold 52,008 shares of Marathon Oil stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 100,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,750,000. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.35% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Marathon Oil

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.