Sei Investments Co. Cuts Stock Holdings in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Sei Investments Co. cut its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 13.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 116,422 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 18,253 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co.’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $16,245,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in MPC. True Wealth Design LLC grew its position 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 valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares during the period. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Asset Planning Inc acquired a new stake in Marathon Petroleum during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new position in Marathon Petroleum in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Cape Investment Advisory Inc. lifted its position in Marathon Petroleum by 762.9% during the fourth quarter. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 302 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 267 shares in the last quarter. 76.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Marathon Petroleum Price Performance

MPC opened at $144.05 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $44.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.51, a PEG ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a 50-day moving average of $148.74 and a 200-day moving average of $151.59. 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 Co. has a 1-year low of $130.54 and a 1-year high of $221.11.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The oil and gas company reported $0.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.06 by $0.71. The firm had revenue of $33.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $31.94 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 12.07% and a net margin of 2.45%. Marathon Petroleum’s revenue for the quarter was down 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.98 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 8.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 19th were issued a $0.91 dividend. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 19th. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.66%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on MPC. Tudor Pickering raised shares of Marathon Petroleum from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Mizuho lowered their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $175.00 to $174.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 16th. Raymond James restated a “strong-buy” rating on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a research note on Thursday. Barclays increased their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $159.00 to $161.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Finally, TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating and set a $170.00 price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $180.21.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Evan Bayh bought 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $133.70 per share, for a total transaction of $133,700.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 69,305 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,266,078.50. The trade was a 1.46 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Ricky D. Hessling purchased 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were bought at an average price of $134.72 per share, for a total transaction of $269,440.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 12,162 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,638,464.64. This trade represents a 19.68 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.21% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Marathon Petroleum

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.