Global Assets Advisory LLC Acquires Shares of 182,743 Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Global Assets Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) during the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm acquired 182,743 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock, valued at approximately $36,823,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA bought a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. ICA Group Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Vima LLC bought a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Bare Financial Services Inc bought a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Institutional investors own 76.77% of the company’s stock.

Marathon Petroleum Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE:MPC opened at $173.99 on Tuesday. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a 1 year low of $111.27 and a 1 year high of $221.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $61.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 1.43 and a quick ratio of 0.99. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $180.74 and its 200-day moving average price is $175.13.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The oil and gas company reported $2.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.53 by $0.25. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 25.87% and a net margin of 5.32%. The firm had revenue of $32.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $32.07 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $6.09 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 18.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 16th were given a dividend of $0.825 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 15th. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.90%. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 16.48%.

Marathon Petroleum declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, April 30th that permits the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the oil and gas company to reacquire up to 7.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on MPC. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $175.00 to $211.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. Mizuho lowered their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $203.00 to $201.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, June 20th. Raymond James lowered their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $235.00 to $230.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $227.00 to $223.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, June 6th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $221.00 to $195.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 6th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $192.08.

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.