Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) Shares Bought by Versant Capital Management Inc

Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its position in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 29.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 739 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after acquiring an additional 169 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $103,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of MPC. Gladius Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in Marathon Petroleum in the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 88.9% during the 3rd quarter. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC now owns 170 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 672.7% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 170 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 148 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Marathon Petroleum in the third quarter valued at $33,000. 76.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on MPC. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating and issued a $170.00 price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $172.00 to $167.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Tudor Pickering cut shares of Marathon Petroleum from a “strong-buy” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Monday, September 9th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $183.00 to $186.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $196.00 to $182.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Marathon Petroleum has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $184.00.

Marathon Petroleum Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of Marathon Petroleum stock opened at $142.74 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 1.23 and a quick ratio of 0.76. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $148.25 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $161.21. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a 52-week low of $130.54 and a 52-week high of $221.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $45.88 billion, a PE ratio of 11.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 1.42.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The oil and gas company reported $1.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.90. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 16.19% and a net margin of 3.15%. The business had revenue of $35.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.34 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $8.14 EPS. Marathon Petroleum’s quarterly revenue was down 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 9.47 EPS for the current year.

Marathon Petroleum Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th were issued 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 was Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.55%. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.84%.

Marathon Petroleum declared that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Tuesday, November 5th that allows the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the oil and gas company to purchase up to 10% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

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

Marathon Petroleum 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.