Bank & Trust Co Has $1.56 Million Stock Holdings in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Bank & Trust Co lowered its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 0.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 11,145 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 79 shares during the period. Marathon Petroleum comprises about 1.3% of Bank & Trust Co’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest holding. Bank & Trust Co’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $1,555,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of MPC. Private Advisor Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 6.8% in the 2nd quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 47,141 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $8,178,000 after buying an additional 3,012 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC acquired a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the 2nd quarter worth $255,000. Caprock Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 673.0% in the 2nd quarter. Caprock Group LLC now owns 18,862 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $3,272,000 after purchasing an additional 16,422 shares during the last quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Marathon Petroleum by 4.0% in the second quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 12,651 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $2,195,000 after purchasing an additional 491 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Marathon Petroleum during the second quarter worth $141,000. 76.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Marathon Petroleum

In other news, Director Jeffrey C. Campbell purchased 6,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 4th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $149.61 per share, for a total transaction of $897,660.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 6,090 shares in the company, valued at approximately $911,124.90. The trade was a 6,666.67 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.21% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on MPC. Citigroup cut their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $172.00 to $167.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Bank of America started coverage on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $174.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $196.00 to $182.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, September 16th. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating and set a $170.00 price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $168.00 to $145.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, September 20th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $184.00.

Marathon Petroleum Price Performance

Shares of Marathon Petroleum stock traded up $1.20 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $141.73. 866,745 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,412,918. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a fifty-two week low of $130.54 and a fifty-two week high of $221.11. The company has a market cap of $45.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 1.42. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $148.04 and a 200 day simple moving average of $160.82. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The oil and gas company reported $1.87 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.90. The business had revenue of $35.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.34 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 16.19% and a net margin of 3.15%. Marathon Petroleum’s revenue for the quarter was down 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $8.14 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 9.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, November 5th that allows the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the oil and gas company to purchase up to 10% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Marathon Petroleum Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th were given a $0.91 dividend. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.57%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, November 20th. This is a boost from Marathon Petroleum’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.84%.

Marathon Petroleum Company Profile

Marathon Petroleum Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an integrated downstream energy company primarily in the United States. The company operates through Refining & Marketing, and Midstream segments. The Refining & Marketing segment refines crude oil and other feedstocks at its refineries in the Gulf Coast, Mid-Continent, and West Coast regions of the United States; and purchases refined products and ethanol for resale and distributes refined products, including renewable diesel, through transportation, storage, distribution, and marketing services.