Susquehanna Reaffirms Positive Rating for Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO)

Susquehanna reaffirmed their positive rating on shares of Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) in a research report sent to investors on Monday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $33.00 price objective on the oil and gas producer’s stock.

Several other analysts have also recently commented on the company. Mizuho raised their target price on Marathon Oil from $28.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Piper Sandler raised their target price on Marathon Oil from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Barclays assumed coverage on Marathon Oil in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. They set an overweight rating and a $35.00 price objective for the company. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an outperform rating and set a $33.00 price objective on shares of Marathon Oil in a research report on Tuesday, March 5th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on Marathon Oil from $39.00 to $36.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Five 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 MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $32.66.

Marathon Oil Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MRO opened at $27.53 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.75 and a beta of 2.22. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $26.55 and its 200 day simple moving average is $25.42. The company has a quick ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. Marathon Oil has a 52-week low of $21.63 and a 52-week high of $30.06.

Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 22nd. The oil and gas producer reported $0.69 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.62 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $1.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.66 billion. Marathon Oil had a return on equity of 14.09% and a net margin of 23.20%. Marathon Oil’s revenue was down 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.88 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Marathon Oil will post 2.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Oil Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be paid a $0.11 dividend. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.60%. Marathon Oil’s payout ratio is presently 17.19%.

Insider Transactions at Marathon Oil

In other news, VP Michael A. Henderson sold 51,389 shares of Marathon Oil stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.59, for a total value of $1,417,822.51. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 114,828 shares in the company, valued at $3,168,104.52. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, insider Patrick Wagner sold 36,094 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.65, for a total transaction of $997,999.10. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 140,829 shares in the company, valued at $3,893,921.85. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Michael A. Henderson sold 51,389 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.59, for a total value of $1,417,822.51. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 114,828 shares in the company, valued at $3,168,104.52. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 281,332 shares of company stock worth $7,644,903. Company insiders own 0.42% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Marathon Oil

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Simplicity Wealth LLC bought a new position in Marathon Oil during the first quarter valued at about $496,000. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Marathon Oil by 16.7% during the first quarter. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 27,885 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $764,000 after purchasing an additional 4,000 shares in the last quarter. Summa Corp. boosted its holdings in Marathon Oil by 3.7% during the first quarter. Summa Corp. now owns 336,000 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $9,522,000 after purchasing an additional 12,000 shares in the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Marathon Oil by 261.0% during the first quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,614 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $74,000 after purchasing an additional 1,890 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amalgamated Bank boosted its holdings in Marathon Oil by 32.7% during the first quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 204,619 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $5,799,000 after purchasing an additional 50,381 shares in the last quarter. 77.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Marathon Oil Company Profile

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.