Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) Shares Sold by Vicus Capital

Vicus Capital trimmed its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 9.0% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 1,733 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 171 shares during the quarter. Vicus Capital’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $282,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 400.0% in the 1st quarter. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC now owns 125 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Crewe Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. TruNorth Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the 2nd quarter valued at $35,000. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the 2nd quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, Wellington Shields & Co. LLC acquired a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the 1st quarter valued at $40,000. 76.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on MPC. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $180.00 to $168.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co. lowered shares of Marathon Petroleum from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, September 9th. Tudor Pickering lowered shares of Marathon Petroleum from a “strong-buy” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, September 9th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $196.00 to $183.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Scotiabank cut their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $191.00 to $170.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $187.00.

Marathon Petroleum Price Performance

Marathon Petroleum stock opened at $158.24 on Wednesday. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a 12-month low of $140.98 and a 12-month high of $221.11. The stock has a market cap of $55.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.90, a PEG ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $166.98 and a 200 day moving average price of $174.53. The company has a current ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The oil and gas company reported $4.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.09 by $1.03. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 4.79% and a return on equity of 24.05%. The firm had revenue of $38.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $36.66 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $5.32 earnings per share. Marathon Petroleum’s revenue was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 10.22 earnings per share for the current year.

Marathon Petroleum Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 21st were given a dividend of $0.825 per share. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.09%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 21st. Marathon Petroleum’s payout ratio is currently 16.48%.

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.