Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) Stock Falls 3.3% – What’s Next?

Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:MPC)’s share price dropped 3.3% during trading on Monday. The company traded as low as $428.72 and last traded at $430.08. Approximately 2,857,778 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 16% from the average daily volume of 2,465,057 shares. The stock had previously closed at $444.73.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Evercore set a $330.00 target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $433.00 price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a report on Sunday, October 11th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $265.00 to $453.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 14th. Zacks Research raised shares of Marathon Petroleum from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 4th. Finally, UBS Group set a $510.00 target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a research report on Friday, October 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Marathon Petroleum has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $424.31.

Marathon Petroleum Stock Down 3.3%

The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $417.80 and its 200-day moving average price is $289.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 0.89. The company has a market cap of $125.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.12 and a beta of 0.53.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The oil and gas company reported $17.73 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $14.27 by $3.46. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 5.48% and a return on equity of 31.96%. The firm had revenue of $51.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $40.87 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.96 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 53.5% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Marathon Petroleum Corporation will post 64.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 18th will be issued a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 18th. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio is currently 13.75%.

Insider Activity at Marathon Petroleum

In related news, insider Molly Benson sold 17,196 shares of Marathon Petroleum stock in a transaction on Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $358.57, for a total transaction of $6,165,969.72. Following the sale, the insider owned 30,334 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,876,862.38. The trade was a 36.18% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Shawn Lyon sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $375.75, for a total value of $375,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 11,194 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,206,145.50. This represents a 8.20% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders sold 21,691 shares of company stock valued at $7,780,127. Corporate insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Platform Technology Partners boosted its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 3.0% in the third quarter. Platform Technology Partners now owns 1,673 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $662,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares during the period. Quest 10 Wealth Builders Inc. lifted its position in Marathon Petroleum by 48.1% in the third quarter. Quest 10 Wealth Builders Inc. now owns 308 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $122,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Wealth Dimensions Group Ltd. lifted its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 36.4% during the third quarter. Wealth Dimensions Group Ltd. now owns 1,350 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $534,000 after purchasing an additional 360 shares during the last quarter. Collaborative Fund Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Marathon Petroleum in the 3rd quarter worth about $450,000. Finally, Pathway Financial Advisers LLC purchased a new position in Marathon Petroleum during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $105,000. Institutional investors own 76.77% of the company’s stock.

Marathon Petroleum Company Profile

Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:MPC) is an American downstream energy company engaged in refining, marketing, and transporting petroleum products. Its operations include converting crude oil into gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, asphalt, propane, and other refined products used by transportation, industrial, and commercial customers.

The company markets fuel under the Marathon brand and supplies products to independent marketers, commercial businesses, and other wholesale customers. Marathon Petroleum also owns a general-partner interest and significant limited-partner interest in MPLX Inc, a midstream company that operates pipelines, storage facilities, terminals, and gathering and processing assets supporting the movement of crude oil and natural gas liquids.

Marathon Petroleum’s refining and midstream activities are concentrated in the United States, with assets serving regions across the Midwest, Gulf Coast, and West Coast.