Vanguard Group Inc. Reduces Stock Holdings in Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO)

Vanguard Group Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO) by 3.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 68,915,765 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 2,379,303 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 11.94% of Marathon Oil worth $1,665,005,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MRO. Fortis Group Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Marathon Oil by 100.0% in the 4th quarter. Fortis Group Advisors LLC now owns 1,236 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 618 shares during the period. Manchester Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Marathon Oil in the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Marathon Oil during the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. ICA Group Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Marathon Oil during the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, Anchor Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Marathon Oil in the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. 77.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on MRO shares. Capital One Financial lowered shares of Marathon Oil from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on Marathon Oil from $26.50 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $33.00 price target on shares of Marathon Oil in a research report on Tuesday, March 5th. Susquehanna reissued a “positive” rating and set a $33.00 price objective on shares of Marathon Oil in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on shares of Marathon Oil from $39.00 to $36.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $32.86.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marathon Oil

In other news, VP Michael A. Henderson sold 51,389 shares of Marathon Oil stock in a transaction on Monday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.59, for a total transaction of $1,417,822.51. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 114,828 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,168,104.52. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, VP Michael A. Henderson sold 51,389 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.59, for a total value of $1,417,822.51. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 114,828 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,168,104.52. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Patrick Wagner sold 36,094 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.65, for a total value of $997,999.10. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 140,829 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,893,921.85. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 160,716 shares of company stock valued at $4,397,507. Insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

Marathon Oil Price Performance

NYSE MRO opened at $27.32 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.48. Marathon Oil Co. has a 1-year low of $21.81 and a 1-year high of $30.06. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.29 and a beta of 2.17. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $27.32 and its 200-day moving average price is $25.58.

Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The oil and gas producer reported $0.55 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.52 by $0.03. Marathon Oil had a return on equity of 13.24% and a net margin of 21.83%. The company had revenue of $1.55 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.56 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.67 earnings per share. Marathon Oil’s revenue was down 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Marathon Oil Co. will post 2.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Marathon Oil Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 15th were given a dividend of $0.11 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 14th. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.61%. Marathon Oil’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.18%.

Marathon Oil Company Profile

Marathon Oil Corporation, an independent exploration and production company, engages in exploration, production, and marketing of crude oil and condensate, natural gas liquids, and natural gas in the United States and internationally. The company also produces and markets products manufactured from natural gas, such as liquefied natural gas and methanol.