HighPoint Advisor Group LLC Takes Position in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

HighPoint Advisor Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 12,707 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,885,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Scarborough Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 10.7% during the fourth quarter. Scarborough Advisors LLC now owns 2,174 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $323,000 after buying an additional 210 shares during the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 8.9% in the fourth quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 1,174 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $174,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Canoe Financial LP bought a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the fourth quarter worth about $33,604,000. Allworth Financial LP grew its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 10,899 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,617,000 after purchasing an additional 340 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the fourth quarter worth about $659,000. 76.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Mizuho raised their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $200.00 to $203.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, May 13th. Tudor Pickering raised Marathon Petroleum to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $175.00 to $211.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. StockNews.com cut Marathon Petroleum from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, June 14th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $221.00 to $195.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 6th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $192.23.

Marathon Petroleum Stock Performance

NYSE:MPC opened at $172.51 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $183.68 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $174.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.43. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a 52-week low of $108.88 and a 52-week high of $221.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $60.78 billion, a PE ratio of 8.62, a P/E/G ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.45.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The oil and gas company reported $2.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.53 by $0.25. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 5.32% and a return on equity of 25.87%. The company had revenue of $32.71 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $32.07 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $6.09 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 18.65 EPS for the current year.

Marathon Petroleum announced that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Tuesday, April 30th that allows the company to buyback $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the oil and gas company to purchase up to 7.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Marathon Petroleum Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 16th were issued a $0.825 dividend. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.91%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 15th. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio is currently 16.48%.

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.