Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) Shares Down 3.3% – Here’s What Happened

Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:MPC)’s stock price dropped 3.3% on Monday. The company traded as low as $428.72 and last traded at $430.08. 2,857,778 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 16% from the average session volume of 2,465,057 shares. The stock had previously closed at $444.73.

More Marathon Petroleum News

Here are the key news stories impacting Marathon Petroleum this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Third-quarter adjusted EPS rose to $26.93 from $3.01 a year earlier, beating estimates. Adjusted EBITDA was $11.7 billion, supported by strong refining margins and record refinery utilization. Article: Marathon Petroleum Q3 Earnings and Revenues Surpass Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: MPC raised its quarterly dividend 10% and approved a $5 billion buyback, signaling confidence in cash generation and increasing potential shareholder returns. Article: Marathon Petroleum Raises Dividend 10% and Approves $5 Billion Buyback
• Neutral Sentiment: MPC agreed to sell its St. Paul Park and Mandan refineries and related businesses to CVR Energy in a roughly $4.2 billion transaction. The company plans to focus investment primarily on Gulf Coast growth; the deal provides substantial proceeds but also reduces its Midwest refining footprint. Article: Marathon Petroleum Agrees $4.2 Billion Refinery Deal To Refocus Its Footprint
• Negative Sentiment: The earnings surge was fueled by exceptional refining margins and favorable fuel spreads. If those conditions ease, profits could retreat, tempering enthusiasm for a quarter that was exceptionally strong. Article: Marathon Petroleum Refining Margin Jumps 160%
• Negative Sentiment: Reports highlighted a sharp single-session selloff, indicating investors were not reassured by the earnings beat and may be weighing profit-taking or the sustainability of peak refining conditions. Article: Marathon Petroleum Drops 7% in a Single Session, Erasing $8 Billion

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have weighed in on MPC. Evercore set a $330.00 target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $410.00 to $426.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, October 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $560.00 to $564.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. UBS Group set a $510.00 price objective on Marathon Petroleum in a research note on Friday, October 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $453.00 to $458.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $424.88.

Marathon Petroleum Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 0.89. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $421.22 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $293.35. The stock has a market cap of $114.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.11 and a beta of 0.53.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 3rd. The oil and gas company reported $26.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $25.37 by $1.56. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 8.27% and a return on equity of 58.93%. The company had revenue of $56.03 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $46.60 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.01 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 57.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Marathon Petroleum Corporation will post 64.12 EPS for the current year.

Marathon Petroleum Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 18th will be paid a $1.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 18th. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 13.75%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Molly Benson sold 17,196 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $358.57, for a total value of $6,165,969.72. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 30,334 shares in the company, valued at $10,876,862.38. The trade was a 36.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Shawn Lyon sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $375.75, for a total value of $375,750.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 11,194 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,206,145.50. This represents a 8.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 21,691 shares of company stock worth $7,780,127 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Marathon Petroleum

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vontobel Holding Ltd. grew its position in Marathon Petroleum by 23.2% in the third quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 14,025 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $5,546,000 after purchasing an additional 2,637 shares in the last quarter. Energy Income Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Marathon Petroleum in the 2nd quarter valued at $4,912,000. Evolve Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Marathon Petroleum during the 2nd quarter worth about $673,000. Railway Pension Investments Ltd bought a new stake in Marathon Petroleum during the 2nd quarter worth about $3,886,000. Finally, Sax Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 471.0% during the 3rd quarter. Sax Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 18,705 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $7,396,000 after buying an additional 15,429 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.77% of the company’s stock.

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.