FARMERS & MERCHANTS TRUST Co OF LONG BEACH Buys 96 Shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

FARMERS & MERCHANTS TRUST Co OF LONG BEACH increased its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 0.6% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 15,036 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after acquiring an additional 96 shares during the period. FARMERS & MERCHANTS TRUST Co OF LONG BEACH’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $2,098,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 342.1% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,593,729 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $911,274,000 after buying an additional 4,328,470 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 8.8% in the 3rd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 2,905,610 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $473,353,000 after acquiring an additional 235,795 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can grew its position in Marathon Petroleum by 45.4% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 1,329,422 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $217,560,000 after acquiring an additional 415,368 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Marathon Petroleum by 19,153.8% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,311,182 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $213,605,000 after purchasing an additional 1,304,372 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board raised its position in Marathon Petroleum by 6.0% in the 2nd quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 1,285,248 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $222,965,000 after purchasing an additional 72,192 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.77% of the company’s stock.

Marathon Petroleum Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE:MPC opened at $152.83 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $147.78 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $159.47. The company has a market capitalization of $49.12 billion, a PE ratio of 12.11, a PEG ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 1.42. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a 52 week low of $130.54 and a 52 week high of $221.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 1.23.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 5th. The oil and gas company reported $1.87 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.97 by $0.90. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 16.19% and a net margin of 3.15%. The business had revenue of $35.37 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.34 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $8.14 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 9.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Marathon Petroleum Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 20th were given a $0.91 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, November 20th. This is a positive change from Marathon Petroleum’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.38%. Marathon Petroleum’s payout ratio is currently 28.84%.

Marathon Petroleum declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, November 5th that permits the company to buyback $5.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the oil and gas company to repurchase up to 10% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MPC has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Piper Sandler decreased 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. Scotiabank lowered their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $191.00 to $170.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Raymond James boosted their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $190.00 to $192.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $172.00 to $167.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Bank of America initiated coverage on Marathon Petroleum in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $174.00 price objective for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $181.20.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Jeffrey C. Campbell bought 6,000 shares of Marathon Petroleum stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 4th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $149.61 per share, with a total value of $897,660.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 6,090 shares in the company, valued at approximately $911,124.90. This trade represents a 6,666.67 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.21% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.