Balboa Wealth Partners Makes New $325,000 Investment in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Balboa Wealth Partners purchased a new position in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 1,996 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock, valued at approximately $325,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of MPC. Spirepoint Private Client LLC purchased a new position in Marathon Petroleum in the first quarter worth $226,000. TIAA Trust National Association grew its holdings in Marathon Petroleum by 38.2% in the first quarter. TIAA Trust National Association now owns 10,800 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $2,176,000 after purchasing an additional 2,985 shares during the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 7.6% during the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 1,663,835 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $335,241,000 after buying an additional 117,790 shares during the last quarter. Cynosure Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the first quarter valued at $962,000. Finally, Trustmark National Bank Trust Department grew its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 17.0% during the first quarter. Trustmark National Bank Trust Department now owns 8,420 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,697,000 after buying an additional 1,222 shares during the last quarter. 76.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $196.00 to $182.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, September 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $172.00 to $171.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $172.00 to $167.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Bank of America started coverage on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $174.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, TD Cowen decreased their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $174.00 to $170.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Two 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $185.07.

Marathon Petroleum Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of Marathon Petroleum stock opened at $157.51 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $159.23 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $168.73. The company has a market cap of $50.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 1.38. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a fifty-two week low of $140.98 and a fifty-two 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 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.90. The business had revenue of $35.37 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.34 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 3.15% and a return on equity of 16.19%. The company’s revenue was down 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $8.14 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 9.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.91 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.31%. This is a boost from Marathon Petroleum’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. Marathon Petroleum’s payout ratio is currently 26.15%.

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

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.