Level Four Advisory Services LLC Sells 1,504 Shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Level Four Advisory Services LLC lowered its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 6.9% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 20,361 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 1,504 shares during the period. Level Four Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $2,840,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SWS Partners grew its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 19.0% in the 4th quarter. SWS Partners now owns 17,577 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $2,452,000 after buying an additional 2,806 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 1,204.8% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 543,062 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $75,757,000 after purchasing an additional 501,441 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB increased its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 747.3% in the third quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 21,275 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $3,466,000 after purchasing an additional 18,764 shares during the period. Greatmark Investment Partners Inc. boosted its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Greatmark Investment Partners Inc. now owns 161,171 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $22,483,000 after purchasing an additional 5,476 shares during the period. Finally, TCTC Holdings LLC grew its holdings in Marathon Petroleum by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 91,256 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $12,730,000 after buying an additional 2,892 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.77% of the company’s stock.

Marathon Petroleum Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MPC opened at $144.05 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $44.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 1.39. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $148.74 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $151.59. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a fifty-two week low of $130.54 and a fifty-two week high of $221.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 1.23 and a quick ratio of 0.76.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The oil and gas company reported $0.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.06 by $0.71. The business had revenue of $33.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $31.94 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 2.45% and a return on equity of 12.07%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.98 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 8.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 19th were given a dividend of $0.91 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 19th. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.53%. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.66%.

Insider Activity at Marathon Petroleum

In other Marathon Petroleum news, insider Ricky D. Hessling bought 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were bought at an average price of $134.72 per share, for a total transaction of $269,440.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now owns 12,162 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,638,464.64. This trade represents a 19.68 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Evan Bayh purchased 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $133.70 per share, with a total value of $133,700.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 69,305 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,266,078.50. The trade was a 1.46 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MPC has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Raymond James reissued a “strong-buy” rating on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a research report on Thursday. Piper Sandler decreased their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $160.00 to $156.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Tudor Pickering raised shares of Marathon Petroleum from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating and set a $170.00 target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $183.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $180.21.

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.