Nilsine Partners LLC Buys 1,746 Shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Nilsine Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 5.6% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 32,683 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,746 shares during the period. Nilsine Partners LLC’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $4,559,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Gladius Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in Marathon Petroleum in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 88.9% in the 3rd quarter. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC now owns 170 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC increased its holdings in Marathon Petroleum by 672.7% during the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 170 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 148 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Marathon Petroleum during the third quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Marathon Petroleum in the third quarter valued at $33,000. 76.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Marathon Petroleum news, Director Jeffrey C. Campbell bought 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 4th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $149.61 per share, for a total transaction of $897,660.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 6,090 shares in the company, valued at $911,124.90. This trade represents a 6,666.67 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on MPC. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $172.00 to $167.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $200.00 to $190.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Bank of America started coverage on Marathon Petroleum in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $174.00 target price for the company. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $186.00 to $182.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $168.00 to $159.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $181.20.

Marathon Petroleum Price Performance

Shares of Marathon Petroleum stock opened at $152.69 on Tuesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $147.18 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $158.52. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a twelve month low of $130.54 and a twelve month high of $221.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $49.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last issued 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 company had revenue of $35.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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 was down 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $8.14 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 8.88 EPS for the current year.

Marathon Petroleum announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, November 5th that permits the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the oil and gas company to repurchase up to 10% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Marathon Petroleum Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 19th will be given a dividend of $0.91 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 19th. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.38%. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.84%.

Marathon Petroleum 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.