Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) Now Covered by StockNews.com

StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) in a research note published on Thursday. The firm issued a buy rating on the oil and gas producer’s stock.

MRO has been the topic of several other reports. Mizuho decreased their price objective on shares of Marathon Oil from $34.00 to $32.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, September 16th. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Marathon Oil from $35.00 to $34.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Citigroup lowered their target price on Marathon Oil from $29.00 to $28.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on Marathon Oil from $34.00 to $37.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 15th. Finally, Susquehanna dropped their target price on Marathon Oil from $39.00 to $37.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $31.12.

Marathon Oil Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of Marathon Oil stock traded down $0.23 during trading on Thursday, hitting $28.32. 1,828,327 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,029,342. Marathon Oil has a 1-year low of $21.81 and a 1-year high of $30.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.15 and a beta of 2.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.57 and a quick ratio of 0.52. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $27.26 and its 200 day moving average price is $27.52.

Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.61 by $0.03. Marathon Oil had a return on equity of 12.87% and a net margin of 19.73%. The firm had revenue of $1.79 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.70 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.77 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Marathon Oil will post 2.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Oil Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a $0.11 dividend. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.55%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. Marathon Oil’s payout ratio is 18.88%.

Insider Activity at Marathon Oil

In other Marathon Oil news, insider Dane E. Whitehead sold 52,008 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.50, for a total value of $1,430,220.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 100,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,750,000. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, VP Michael A. Henderson sold 38,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.21, for a total transaction of $1,033,980.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 76,828 shares in the company, valued at $2,090,489.88. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Dane E. Whitehead sold 52,008 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.50, for a total transaction of $1,430,220.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 100,000 shares in the company, valued at $2,750,000. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.35% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Marathon Oil

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MRO. HWG Holdings LP purchased a new position in Marathon Oil during the second quarter valued at $26,000. Founders Capital Management lifted its stake in shares of Marathon Oil by 100.0% in the second quarter. Founders Capital Management now owns 1,000 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. Highbridge Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Marathon Oil during the second quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Grove Bank & Trust raised its position in Marathon Oil by 77.4% in the 2nd quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 1,066 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 465 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in Marathon Oil in the third quarter valued at about $36,000. 77.24% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.