Sawgrass Asset Management LLC Has $2.29 Million Stock Position in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Sawgrass Asset Management LLC cut its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 3.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 15,444 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 480 shares during the period. Sawgrass Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $2,291,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA acquired a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Bare Financial Services Inc bought a new position in Marathon Petroleum during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Pittenger & Anderson Inc. acquired a new position in Marathon Petroleum during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners bought a new stake in Marathon Petroleum in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.77% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently commented on MPC. TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $168.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Barclays decreased their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $221.00 to $195.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Scotiabank raised their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $175.00 to $207.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $159.00 to $204.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Finally, Mizuho reduced their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $202.00 to $200.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $191.62.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marathon Petroleum

In related news, Director Kim K.W. Rucker sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.35, for a total value of $170,350.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 23,446 shares in the company, valued at $3,994,026.10. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Marathon Petroleum Stock Performance

Shares of MPC stock traded up $0.01 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $180.93. 1,844,612 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,753,044. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $194.58 and its 200-day moving average price is $168.73. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a twelve month low of $104.32 and a twelve month high of $221.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $63.75 billion, a PE ratio of 9.04, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.55.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The oil and gas company reported $2.78 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $32.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $32.07 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $6.09 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 19.96 EPS for the current year.

Marathon Petroleum Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 16th will be given a dividend of $0.825 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 15th. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.82%. Marathon Petroleum’s payout ratio is presently 16.48%.

Marathon Petroleum declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback program on Tuesday, April 30th that allows the company to buyback $5.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the oil and gas company to reacquire up to 7.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Marathon Petroleum Company 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.