Marathon Petroleum Corporation $MPC Shares Acquired by Range Financial Group LLC

Range Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:MPC) by 689.0% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 15,686 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after purchasing an additional 13,698 shares during the quarter. Marathon Petroleum accounts for about 1.7% of Range Financial Group LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 8th largest holding. Range Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $6,202,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Solstein Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the second quarter valued at $26,000. Caitlin John LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. Bell Investment Advisors Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. Main Street Group LTD bought a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the 1st quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Cetera Trust Company N.A bought a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the 2nd quarter worth $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.77% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Erin M. Brzezinski sold 570 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $362.79, for a total value of $206,790.30. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 1,576 shares in the company, valued at $571,757.04. This represents a 26.56% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Shawn M. Lyon sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $375.75, for a total transaction of $375,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 11,194 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,206,145.50. This trade represents a 8.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 21,691 shares of company stock worth $7,780,127. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Mizuho lifted their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $304.00 to $457.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 8th. Citigroup upped their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $318.00 to $518.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 13th. Zacks Research raised Marathon Petroleum from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 4th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $400.00 to $560.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 14th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Marathon Petroleum from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Marathon Petroleum currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $417.88.

Marathon Petroleum Stock Performance

Shares of Marathon Petroleum stock opened at $474.78 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $138.61 billion, a PE ratio of 16.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.14 and a beta of 0.54. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $403.53 and a 200-day simple moving average of $312.67. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. Marathon Petroleum Corporation has a 12 month low of $161.93 and a 12 month high of $493.98.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The oil and gas company reported $17.73 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $14.27 by $3.46. The business had revenue of $51.99 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $40.87 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 31.96% and a net margin of 5.48%. Marathon Petroleum’s revenue for the quarter was up 53.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.96 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Marathon Petroleum Corporation will post 62.78 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 19th were given a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 19th. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.75%.

Marathon Petroleum Company Profile

Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:MPC) is an American downstream energy company engaged in refining, marketing, and transporting petroleum products. Its operations include converting crude oil into gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, asphalt, propane, and other refined products used by transportation, industrial, and commercial customers.

The company markets fuel under the Marathon brand and supplies products to independent marketers, commercial businesses, and other wholesale customers. Marathon Petroleum also owns a general-partner interest and significant limited-partner interest in MPLX Inc, a midstream company that operates pipelines, storage facilities, terminals, and gathering and processing assets supporting the movement of crude oil and natural gas liquids.

Marathon Petroleum’s refining and midstream activities are concentrated in the United States, with assets serving regions across the Midwest, Gulf Coast, and West Coast.