Private Advisor Group LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Private Advisor Group LLC trimmed its position in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC - Free Report) by 17.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 39,976 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after selling 8,245 shares during the quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC's holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $5,577,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 342.1% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,593,729 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $911,274,000 after purchasing an additional 4,328,470 shares in the last quarter. ING Groep NV bought a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the third quarter valued at approximately $114,107,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 22.3% in the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,552,655 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $495,595,000 after purchasing an additional 647,045 shares during the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI increased its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 212.9% in the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 846,756 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $137,945,000 after buying an additional 576,119 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its holdings in Marathon Petroleum by 1,204.8% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 543,062 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $75,757,000 after buying an additional 501,441 shares in the last quarter. 76.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Marathon Petroleum Trading Down 3.2 %

NYSE MPC traded down $4.78 on Wednesday, hitting $145.81. The company's stock had a trading volume of 812,278 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,794,523. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a 52-week low of $130.54 and a 52-week high of $221.11. The firm has a market cap of $46.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.70, a PEG ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 1.41. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $147.27 and its 200 day simple moving average is $156.07. 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 (NYSE:MPC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The oil and gas company reported $0.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.06 by $0.71. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 2.45% and a return on equity of 12.07%. The firm had revenue of $33.47 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $31.94 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.98 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was down 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 8.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 19th will be given a dividend of $0.91 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 19th. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.50%. Marathon Petroleum's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.66%.

Marathon Petroleum announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, November 5th that authorizes the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the oil and gas company to repurchase up to 10% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on MPC shares. Raymond James boosted their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $190.00 to $192.00 and gave the company a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $168.00 to $159.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Tudor Pickering upgraded shares of Marathon Petroleum from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Mizuho reduced their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $175.00 to $174.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $182.00 to $183.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $181.27.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marathon Petroleum

In other news, Director Jeffrey C. Campbell purchased 6,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 4th. The shares were bought at an average price of $149.61 per share, for a total transaction of $897,660.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 6,090 shares in the company, valued at $911,124.90. This represents a 6,666.67 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.