Wells Fargo & Company Issues Positive Forecast for Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) Stock Price

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) had its price target increased by Wells Fargo & Company from $183.00 to $186.00 in a research report released on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an overweight rating on the oil and gas company’s stock.

Other equities research analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Mizuho lowered their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $198.00 to $193.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $196.00 to $182.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, September 16th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $200.00 to $190.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 4th. TD Cowen decreased their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $174.00 to $170.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co. downgraded Marathon Petroleum from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, September 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $185.27.

Marathon Petroleum Stock Performance

NYSE MPC opened at $153.01 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $49.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.12, a P/E/G ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 1.40. Marathon Petroleum has a 12-month low of $141.45 and a 12-month high of $221.11. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $156.76 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $165.70.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 5th. The oil and gas company reported $1.87 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.97 by $0.90. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 3.15% and a return on equity of 16.19%. The company had revenue of $35.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.34 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $8.14 earnings per share. Marathon Petroleum’s revenue for the quarter was down 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Marathon Petroleum will post 9.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Marathon Petroleum declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program on Tuesday, November 5th that allows the company to buyback $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the oil and gas company to buy up to 10% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Marathon Petroleum Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.91 per share. This is a positive change from Marathon Petroleum’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.38%. Marathon Petroleum’s payout ratio is 28.84%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Marathon Petroleum news, Director Jeffrey C. Campbell bought 6,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 4th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $149.61 per share, with a total value of $897,660.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 6,090 shares in the company, valued at approximately $911,124.90. This trade represents a 6,666.67 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Marathon Petroleum

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of MPC. Oddo BHF Asset Management Sas bought a new position in Marathon Petroleum during the third quarter valued at about $5,226,000. American Trust boosted its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 5.3% in the 3rd quarter. American Trust now owns 1,397 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $228,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Synovus Financial Corp raised its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 18.5% in the third quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 32,640 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $5,317,000 after acquiring an additional 5,095 shares during the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC boosted its holdings in Marathon Petroleum by 121.0% in the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 17,445 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $2,842,000 after acquiring an additional 9,551 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB lifted its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 747.3% in the 3rd quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 21,275 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $3,466,000 after purchasing an additional 18,764 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 76.77% of the company’s stock.

Marathon Petroleum Company 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.