Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co Has $356,000 Stock Position in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co trimmed its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC - Free Report) by 72.0% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,188 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after selling 5,633 shares during the period. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co's holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $356,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in MPC. Gladius Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in Marathon Petroleum in the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 88.9% during the third quarter. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC now owns 170 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the period. True Wealth Design LLC raised its holdings in Marathon Petroleum by 672.7% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 170 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. 76.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently commented on MPC shares. Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co. lowered Marathon Petroleum from a "buy" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Monday, September 9th. Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $174.00 target price on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $172.00 to $171.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Tudor Pickering downgraded Marathon Petroleum from a "strong-buy" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Monday, September 9th. Finally, Piper Sandler cut their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $168.00 to $145.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $185.27.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marathon Petroleum

In related news, Director Jeffrey C. Campbell purchased 6,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 4th. The shares were bought at an average price of $149.61 per share, with a total value of $897,660.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 6,090 shares in the company, valued at $911,124.90. This trade represents a 6,666.67 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 0.21% of the company's stock.

Marathon Petroleum Price Performance

Shares of MPC stock traded down $0.72 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $145.56. 2,014,740 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,615,508. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a fifty-two week low of $142.84 and a fifty-two week high of $221.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 1.23 and a quick ratio of 0.76. The stock's fifty day moving average is $155.10 and its two-hundred day moving average is $165.06. The company has a market cap of $46.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.53, a P/E/G ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 1.39.

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, topping the consensus estimate of $0.97 by $0.90. The firm had revenue of $35.37 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.34 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 16.19% and a net margin of 3.15%. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $8.14 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 9.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th were issued a dividend of $0.91 per share. This is a boost from Marathon Petroleum's previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.50%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 20th. Marathon Petroleum's payout ratio is currently 28.84%.

Marathon Petroleum declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Tuesday, November 5th that authorizes the company to buyback $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the oil and gas company to buy up to 10% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

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.