UBS Group Increases Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) Price Target to $280.00

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) had its target price hoisted by equities researchers at UBS Group from $221.00 to $280.00 in a report released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “buy” rating on the oil and gas company’s stock. UBS Group’s price objective indicates a potential upside of 16.28% from the stock’s current price.

Several other brokerages have also commented on MPC. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $213.00 to $217.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $216.00 to $205.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 26th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Piper Sandler dropped their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $231.00 to $184.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Marathon Petroleum from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, March 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Marathon Petroleum has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $219.19.

Marathon Petroleum Stock Up 1.1%

Shares of NYSE:MPC traded up $2.64 during trading on Thursday, reaching $240.80. The stock had a trading volume of 988,266 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,624,543. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $209.67 and its 200 day simple moving average is $193.63. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.27. Marathon Petroleum has a one year low of $115.10 and a one year high of $255.77. The company has a market capitalization of $70.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.00, a PEG ratio of 0.52 and a beta of 0.58.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 3rd. The oil and gas company reported $4.07 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.73 by $0.34. The firm had revenue of $32.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $30.89 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 2.99% and a return on equity of 13.90%. Marathon Petroleum’s revenue was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.77 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Marathon Petroleum will post 8.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marathon Petroleum

In other news, insider Ricky D. Hessling sold 1,810 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $224.78, for a total value of $406,851.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 10,188 shares in the company, valued at $2,290,058.64. This trade represents a 15.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders sold 4,473 shares of company stock valued at $1,015,428 over the last quarter. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Marathon Petroleum

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of MPC. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. Navalign LLC purchased a new position in Marathon Petroleum during the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in Marathon Petroleum during the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. Berbice Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Marathon Petroleum by 100.0% in the fourth quarter. Berbice Capital Management LLC now owns 200 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Finally, WFA of San Diego LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the second quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.77% of the company’s stock.

Marathon Petroleum Company Profile

Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE: MPC) is a U.S.-based downstream energy company engaged principally in the refining, marketing, supply and transportation of petroleum products. The company was formed through a spin-off from Marathon Oil in 2011 and operates an integrated system of refining and logistics assets that support the production and distribution of transportation fuels and other refined petroleum products.

Marathon Petroleum’s operations include refining crude oil into gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, asphalt and other specialty products, as well as managing the distribution and storage infrastructure needed to move those products to market.