Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) Shares Up 3.4% – Still a Buy?

Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:MPC) shares rose 3.4% during mid-day trading on Wednesday. The stock traded as high as $402.99 and last traded at $402.7270. 1,762,002 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 29% from the average daily volume of 2,473,885 shares. The stock had previously closed at $389.55.

Key Marathon Petroleum News

These are some of the MPC news items that stood out recently:

• Positive Sentiment: A recent screen highlighted MPC among stocks with attractive PEG ratios and earnings-growth prospects, reinforcing its potential appeal on valuation. Beat Value Traps: 4 Stocks With Attractive PEG Ratios to Buy Now
• Positive Sentiment: Investors have also been weighing strong Q3 earnings and cash returns: MPC reported adjusted earnings of $26.93 per share, returned $3.3 billion to shareholders, authorized another $5 billion in buybacks and raised its dividend 10%. Its planned $4.2 billion sale of two refineries could free funds for reinvestment and sharpen its portfolio. Marathon Petroleum Rises as Investors Continue to Digest Strong Q3 Results and Asset Sale
• Negative Sentiment: Reported open-market activity showed MPC insiders made no purchases and sold shares in the past six months, a possible cautionary signal, though insider sales alone do not establish a change in business outlook.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MPC has been the topic of a number of research reports. UBS Group set a $510.00 target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a report on Friday, October 9th. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $410.00 to $426.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, October 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $376.00 to $472.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 21st. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $321.00 to $488.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 12th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $462.00 to $466.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $424.06.

Marathon Petroleum Stock Up 0.3%

The company has a quick ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $423.34 and its 200 day moving average price is $299.82. The firm has a market cap of $112.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.10 and a beta of 0.53.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 3rd. The oil and gas company reported $26.93 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $25.37 by $1.56. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 8.27% and a return on equity of 55.82%. The firm had revenue of $56.03 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $46.60 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.01 EPS. Marathon Petroleum’s quarterly revenue was up 57.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Marathon Petroleum Corporation will post 66.31 earnings per share for the current year.

Marathon Petroleum Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 18th will be issued a dividend of $1.00 per share. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 18th. Marathon Petroleum’s payout ratio is 13.75%.

Insider Transactions at Marathon Petroleum

In related news, VP Erin M. Brzezinski sold 570 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $362.79, for a total value of $206,790.30. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 1,576 shares in the company, valued at $571,757.04. This trade represents a 26.56% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Shawn M. Lyon sold 1,000 shares of Marathon Petroleum stock in a transaction on Monday, August 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $375.75, for a total value of $375,750.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 11,194 shares in the company, valued at $4,206,145.50. The trade was a 8.20% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders sold 19,191 shares of company stock worth $6,905,127. Company insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Marathon Petroleum in the 2nd quarter valued at about $6,648,958,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the 2nd quarter worth about $1,029,611,000. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 1.6% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 2,595,084 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $633,668,000 after acquiring an additional 40,124 shares during the period. Amundi lifted its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 17.5% in the 2nd quarter. Amundi now owns 2,237,930 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $572,172,000 after acquiring an additional 332,551 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 16.7% in the 2nd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,508,489 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $385,675,000 after acquiring an additional 215,686 shares during the period. 76.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Marathon Petroleum

Marathon Petroleum Corporation is an integrated downstream energy company focused on refining, marketing, and transporting petroleum products. Its refineries produce fuels and other products, including gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, asphalt, and petrochemical feedstocks. The company sells transportation fuels and related products through a network of branded locations and other wholesale and commercial channels, primarily in the United States. Its midstream operations, conducted largely through its affiliated partnership MPLX, include gathering, processing, and transporting natural gas and natural gas liquids, as well as storing and transporting crude oil and refined products.