Fmr LLC Sells 78,024 Shares of Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO)

Fmr LLC reduced its position in Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO) by 5.3% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,399,748 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 78,024 shares during the period. Fmr LLC owned approximately 0.25% of Marathon Oil worth $37,275,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of MRO. Gradient Investments LLC increased its holdings in Marathon Oil by 1.9% during the second quarter. Gradient Investments LLC now owns 22,829 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $655,000 after buying an additional 428 shares during the last quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Marathon Oil by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC now owns 24,084 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $641,000 after purchasing an additional 454 shares in the last quarter. Grove Bank & Trust raised its holdings in Marathon Oil by 77.4% in the 2nd quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 1,066 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 465 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its position in Marathon Oil by 6.5% during the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 7,897 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $210,000 after purchasing an additional 483 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Catalina Capital Group LLC increased its position in Marathon Oil by 3.1% in the third quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC now owns 16,533 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $440,000 after buying an additional 495 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.24% of the company’s stock.

Marathon Oil Price Performance

Shares of MRO stock opened at $28.55 on Monday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $27.89 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $27.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.69 and a quick ratio of 0.61. Marathon Oil Co. has a one year low of $21.81 and a one year high of $30.06. The company has a market capitalization of $15.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.25 and a beta of 2.16.

Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.63 by $0.01. Marathon Oil had a net margin of 19.73% and a return on equity of 12.80%. The business had revenue of $1.79 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.70 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.77 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Marathon Oil Co. will post 2.34 EPS for the current year.

Marathon Oil Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th will be given a $0.11 dividend. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.54%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. Marathon Oil’s payout ratio is 18.88%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on MRO. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Marathon Oil from $29.00 to $27.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Mizuho decreased their price objective on shares of Marathon Oil from $34.00 to $32.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Truist Financial dropped their target price on shares of Marathon Oil from $35.00 to $27.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, September 30th. Piper Sandler decreased their price target on Marathon Oil from $37.00 to $34.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 18th. Finally, Susquehanna cut their target price on Marathon Oil from $39.00 to $37.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $30.94.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Lee M. Tillman sold 256,591 shares of Marathon Oil stock in a transaction on Monday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.07, for a total transaction of $7,459,100.37. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 596,330 shares in the company, valued at $17,335,313.10. The trade was a 30.08 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Dane E. Whitehead sold 52,008 shares of Marathon Oil stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.50, for a total transaction of $1,430,220.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 100,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,750,000. The trade was a 34.21 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 344,693 shares of company stock worth $9,930,271. 0.35% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Marathon Oil 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.