Trexquant Investment LP Acquires New Holdings in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Trexquant Investment LP acquired a new stake in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 11,626 shares of the oil and gas company's stock, valued at approximately $1,622,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. OLD Second National Bank of Aurora raised its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 7.2% in the 4th quarter. OLD Second National Bank of Aurora now owns 994 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $139,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the period. Nixon Peabody Trust Co. raised its holdings in Marathon Petroleum by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Nixon Peabody Trust Co. now owns 2,068 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $288,000 after buying an additional 68 shares during the period. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC lifted its position in Marathon Petroleum by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC now owns 4,271 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $596,000 after buying an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. American Trust grew its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 5.3% during the third quarter. American Trust now owns 1,397 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $228,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the period. Finally, DT Investment Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 21.5% in the fourth quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC now owns 395 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $55,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. 76.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Marathon Petroleum

In other news, Director Evan Bayh bought 1,000 shares of Marathon Petroleum stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $133.70 per share, with a total value of $133,700.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 69,305 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,266,078.50. This trade represents a 1.46 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Ricky D. Hessling bought 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $134.72 per share, with a total value of $269,440.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 12,162 shares in the company, valued at $1,638,464.64. The trade was a 19.68 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.21% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on MPC. Piper Sandler decreased their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $160.00 to $156.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Scotiabank lowered their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $169.00 to $147.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Raymond James reduced their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $193.00 to $183.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $185.00 to $175.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Finally, Tudor Pickering upgraded shares of Marathon Petroleum from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $175.79.

Marathon Petroleum Stock Performance

Shares of MPC stock traded down $0.75 on Tuesday, hitting $124.10. 486,269 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,681,947. The company has a market capitalization of $38.66 billion, a PE ratio of 12.47, a PEG ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 1.04. The company's fifty day moving average is $143.00 and its 200 day moving average is $148.44. 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 1-year low of $115.10 and a 1-year high of $210.80.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 net margin of 2.45% and a return on equity of 12.07%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.98 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 8.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 19th were given a dividend of $0.91 per share. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.93%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 19th. Marathon Petroleum's payout ratio is 36.66%.

Marathon Petroleum 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.