Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC Increases Stake in Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO)

Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC increased its holdings in Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO) by 20.6% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 150,039 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after acquiring an additional 25,607 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC’s holdings in Marathon Oil were worth $4,287,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Marathon Oil by 9.9% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 75,751,369 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $2,146,794,000 after acquiring an additional 6,835,604 shares during the period. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Marathon Oil by 24.3% in the fourth quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 19,388,560 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $468,428,000 after purchasing an additional 3,795,020 shares in the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Marathon Oil during the second quarter valued at about $64,061,000. Pentwater Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Marathon Oil in the 2nd quarter valued at about $30,104,000. Finally, Toronto Dominion Bank grew its position in shares of Marathon Oil by 323.9% in the 1st quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 1,369,127 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $38,801,000 after buying an additional 1,046,122 shares during the last quarter. 77.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Marathon Oil Stock Up 1.7 %

Shares of MRO opened at $27.89 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $15.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.52 and a beta of 2.16. Marathon Oil Co. has a 52 week low of $21.81 and a 52 week high of $30.06. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $27.68 and its 200-day moving average price is $27.53. The company has a quick ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41.

Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.63 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.69 by ($0.06). Marathon Oil had a net margin of 22.12% and a return on equity of 13.81%. The firm had revenue of $1.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.69 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.48 earnings per share. Marathon Oil’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Marathon Oil Co. will post 2.7 EPS for the current year.

Marathon Oil Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 21st were given a $0.11 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 21st. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.58%. Marathon Oil’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 18.18%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on MRO shares. Susquehanna lowered their target price on shares of Marathon Oil from $39.00 to $37.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. UBS Group dropped their target price on Marathon Oil from $30.00 to $28.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Mizuho reduced their target price on Marathon Oil from $34.00 to $32.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an “equal weight” rating and issued a $29.00 price target (down previously from $38.00) on shares of Marathon Oil in a report on Friday, May 31st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Marathon Oil from $33.00 to $30.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 12th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Marathon Oil currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $31.65.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Michael A. Henderson sold 38,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.21, for a total value of $1,033,980.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 76,828 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,090,489.88. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

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.