Magnetar Financial LLC Invests $63.56 Million in Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO)

Magnetar Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 2,216,804 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock, valued at approximately $63,556,000. Marathon Oil comprises about 1.3% of Magnetar Financial LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest holding. Magnetar Financial LLC owned about 0.40% of Marathon Oil as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MRO. Park Avenue Securities LLC grew its stake in shares of Marathon Oil by 4.8% during the first quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 9,062 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $257,000 after buying an additional 415 shares during the last quarter. Wahed Invest LLC increased its stake in Marathon Oil by 4.2% in the fourth quarter. Wahed Invest LLC now owns 10,317 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $249,000 after purchasing an additional 419 shares during the period. Gradient Investments LLC boosted its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 428 shares during the period. Trueblood Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Marathon Oil by 4.8% during the first quarter. Trueblood Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,559 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $271,000 after purchasing an additional 439 shares during the period. Finally, Argent Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Marathon Oil by 0.5% in the first quarter. Argent Capital Management LLC now owns 87,563 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $2,482,000 after purchasing an additional 441 shares during the last quarter. 77.24% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have commented on MRO. Scotiabank dropped their target price on shares of Marathon Oil from $29.00 to $27.61 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on Marathon Oil from $34.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 15th. Capital One Financial cut Marathon Oil from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 5th. Citigroup cut their price target on Marathon Oil from $29.00 to $28.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. Finally, Susquehanna dropped their target price on shares of Marathon Oil from $39.00 to $37.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $31.65.

Marathon Oil Price Performance

NYSE MRO opened at $27.93 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $15.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.54 and a beta of 2.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.57 and a quick ratio of 0.52. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $27.67 and its 200 day moving average price is $27.60. Marathon Oil Co. has a 1 year low of $21.81 and a 1 year high of $30.06.

Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.69 by ($0.06). Marathon Oil had a return on equity of 13.81% and a net margin of 22.12%. The firm had revenue of $1.71 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.69 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.48 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Marathon Oil Co. will post 2.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Marathon Oil Announces Dividend

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

Insider Transactions at Marathon Oil

In other Marathon Oil news, insider Dane E. Whitehead sold 52,008 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 18th. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,750,000. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, insider Dane E. Whitehead sold 52,008 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 owns 100,000 shares in the company, valued at $2,750,000. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Michael A. Henderson sold 38,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.21, for a total transaction of $1,033,980.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 76,828 shares in the company, valued at $2,090,489.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

About Marathon Oil

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.