Candriam S.C.A. Raises Holdings in Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO)

Candriam S.C.A. boosted its stake in shares of Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO) by 11.9% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 64,833 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after buying an additional 6,917 shares during the period. Candriam S.C.A.’s holdings in Marathon Oil were worth $1,859,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of MRO. Riverview Trust Co bought a new position in shares of Marathon Oil in the 1st quarter worth $27,000. Benjamin Edwards Inc. raised its holdings in Marathon Oil by 226.0% in the first quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 978 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 678 shares in the last quarter. Founders Capital Management lifted its position in shares of Marathon Oil by 100.0% during the second quarter. Founders Capital Management now owns 1,000 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 500 shares during the last quarter. Grove Bank & Trust boosted its holdings in shares of Marathon Oil by 77.4% in the 2nd quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 1,066 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 465 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fortis Group Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Marathon Oil by 100.0% in the 4th quarter. Fortis Group Advisors LLC now owns 1,236 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 618 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 77.24% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Marathon Oil from $29.00 to $28.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on Marathon Oil from $32.00 to $30.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 13th. Capital One Financial lowered Marathon Oil from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 5th. Susquehanna lowered their price target on Marathon Oil from $39.00 to $37.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. Finally, StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Marathon Oil in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $32.03.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Michael A. Henderson sold 38,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, September 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.21, for a total transaction of $1,033,980.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 76,828 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,090,489.88. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

Marathon Oil Trading Down 1.5 %

NYSE MRO opened at $26.22 on Wednesday. Marathon Oil Co. has a 1 year low of $21.81 and a 1 year high of $30.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.57 and a quick ratio of 0.52. The company has a market capitalization of $14.67 billion, a PE ratio of 10.83 and a beta of 2.16. The company has a fifty day moving average of $27.90 and a 200 day moving average of $27.46.

Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.63 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.69 by ($0.06). The company had revenue of $1.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.69 billion. Marathon Oil had a net margin of 22.12% and a return on equity of 13.81%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.48 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Marathon Oil Co. will post 2.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Marathon Oil Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 21st were paid a dividend of $0.11 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 21st. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.68%. Marathon Oil’s payout ratio is 18.18%.

About Marathon Oil

Marathon Oil Corporation, an independent exploration and production company, engages in exploration, production, and marketing of crude oil and condensate, natural gas liquids, and natural gas in the United States and internationally. The company also produces and markets products manufactured from natural gas, such as liquefied natural gas and methanol.