Retirement Systems of Alabama Reduces Stake in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Retirement Systems of Alabama cut its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC - Free Report) by 7.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 255,709 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after selling 21,579 shares during the quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama owned 0.08% of Marathon Petroleum worth $41,658,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 342.1% in the third 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 during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Marathon Petroleum by 19,153.8% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,311,182 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $213,605,000 after buying an additional 1,304,372 shares during the period. ING Groep NV bought a new stake in Marathon Petroleum in the 3rd quarter worth $114,107,000. National Bank of Canada FI increased its position 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 acquiring an additional 576,119 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can raised its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 45.4% during the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 1,329,422 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $217,560,000 after acquiring an additional 415,368 shares during the last quarter. 76.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on MPC shares. Mizuho reduced their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $198.00 to $193.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, September 16th. Barclays decreased their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $168.00 to $159.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 11th. Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $174.00 price objective on the stock. Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co. cut shares of Marathon Petroleum from a "buy" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Monday, September 9th. Finally, TD Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $170.00 target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a research note on Tuesday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $185.27.

Marathon Petroleum Price Performance

Shares of MPC stock traded down $0.72 on Friday, hitting $145.56. 2,014,740 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,615,508. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 1.23 and a quick ratio of 0.76. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a 52 week low of $142.84 and a 52 week high of $221.11. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $155.10 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $165.06. The firm has a market cap of $46.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.53, a PEG ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 1.39.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The oil and gas company reported $1.87 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.90. The business had revenue of $35.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $34.34 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 16.19% and a net margin of 3.15%. The business's quarterly revenue was down 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $8.14 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 9.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 20th were given a dividend of $0.91 per share. This is a positive change from Marathon Petroleum's previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.50%. Marathon Petroleum's dividend payout ratio is currently 28.84%.

Marathon Petroleum announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, November 5th that allows the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the oil and gas company to reacquire up to 10% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity 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 stock was bought at an average cost of $149.61 per share, with a total value of $897,660.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 6,090 shares in the company, valued at approximately $911,124.90. This represents a 6,666.67 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 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.