Wedge Capital Management L L P NC Has $17.01 Million Holdings in Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO)

Wedge Capital Management L L P NC lifted its holdings in shares of Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO) by 13.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 704,129 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after purchasing an additional 85,251 shares during the quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC owned 0.12% of Marathon Oil worth $17,012,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in Marathon Oil by 1.6% in the third quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 26,569 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $711,000 after buying an additional 421 shares during the last quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. grew its holdings in shares of Marathon Oil by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. now owns 23,631 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $571,000 after purchasing an additional 477 shares in the last quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC raised its holdings in Marathon Oil by 6.8% during the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 7,770 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $188,000 after acquiring an additional 494 shares in the last quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Marathon Oil by 24.2% during the 3rd quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,603 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $70,000 after purchasing an additional 508 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vontobel Holding Ltd. raised its position in shares of Marathon Oil by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 12,747 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $341,000 after acquiring an additional 512 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.24% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on MRO. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Marathon Oil from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Barclays assumed coverage on Marathon Oil in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $35.00 price target on the stock. Raymond James dropped their price target on Marathon Oil from $35.00 to $32.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. Argus upgraded Marathon Oil from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $31.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price objective on Marathon Oil from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Marathon Oil currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $32.66.

Marathon Oil Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of MRO traded down $0.19 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $27.46. 842,303 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 9,748,583. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.69 billion, a PE ratio of 10.80 and a beta of 2.22. The business has a fifty day moving average of $26.33 and a 200-day moving average of $25.38. The company has a current ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. Marathon Oil Co. has a 1-year low of $21.63 and a 1-year high of $30.06.

Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 22nd. The oil and gas producer reported $0.69 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.62 by $0.07. Marathon Oil had a return on equity of 14.09% and a net margin of 23.20%. The company had revenue of $1.69 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.66 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.88 earnings per share. Marathon Oil’s revenue was down 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Marathon Oil Co. will post 2.74 EPS for the current year.

Marathon Oil Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 11th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 21st were paid a dividend of $0.11 per share. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.60%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 20th. Marathon Oil’s payout ratio is currently 17.19%.

Insider Transactions at Marathon Oil

In related news, CFO Dane E. Whitehead sold 73,233 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.06, for a total value of $1,981,684.98. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 152,008 shares in the company, valued at $4,113,336.48. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, insider Patrick Wagner sold 36,094 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.65, for a total transaction of $997,999.10. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 140,829 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,893,921.85. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Dane E. Whitehead sold 73,233 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.06, for a total value of $1,981,684.98. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 152,008 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,113,336.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 281,332 shares of company stock worth $7,644,903 over the last ninety days. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.