#7 - Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:MPC)
Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE: MPC) - Marathon crushed their latest earnings report by 35%, and their success has more to do with the efficiency of the company than oil prices. Marathon has been a company that has actually seen its margins increase while oil prices rise, which is certainly an anomaly in a rising oil price environment. This is due to Marathon’s ability to source and refine hard-to-process blends of crude oil. But there’s more than just their ability to process what the industry calls “sour crude” as a reason to invest in Marathon. They recently transferred a significant portion of their refining and marketing income to its MPLX subsidiary and is not taking the cash generated (over $230 million) and put it back into a stock buyback program and dividend reinvestment. And if that weren’t enough, MPC is virtually a lock to complete a merger with industry-darling Andeavor. Marathon’s stock has risen 40% in the past year which may give some investors reason to pause. However, with significant ways to generate positive, and increasing EPS numbers, as well as the pending merger with Andeavor and there are reasons to believe Marathon will continue to provide value in 2019.
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.
Read More - Current Price
- $158.48
- Consensus Rating
- Moderate Buy
- Ratings Breakdown
- 10 Buy Ratings, 5 Hold Ratings, 2 Sell Ratings.
- Consensus Price Target
- $185.07 (16.8% Upside)
