Zullo Investment Group Inc. Has $277,000 Stock Holdings in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Zullo Investment Group Inc. increased its position in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 7.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,986 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after purchasing an additional 138 shares during the quarter. Zullo Investment Group Inc.’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $277,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Gladius Capital Management LP bought a new stake in Marathon Petroleum in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 88.9% during the 3rd quarter. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC now owns 170 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC raised its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 672.7% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 170 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares during the period. Asset Planning Inc acquired a new stake in Marathon Petroleum during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Marathon Petroleum during the third quarter worth $30,000. 76.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Marathon Petroleum

In related news, Director Jeffrey C. Campbell bought 6,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 4th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $149.61 per share, with a total value of $897,660.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 6,090 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $911,124.90. The trade was a 6,666.67 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Marathon Petroleum Trading Down 1.4 %

Shares of Marathon Petroleum stock opened at $156.79 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a 12-month low of $130.54 and a 12-month high of $221.11. The company has a market capitalization of $50.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.79, a PEG ratio of 3.13 and a beta of 1.41. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $146.32 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $156.63.

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

Marathon Petroleum declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, November 5th that authorizes the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the oil and gas company to buy up to 10% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Marathon Petroleum Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.91 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 19th. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.32%. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.66%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Raymond James increased their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $190.00 to $192.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $182.00 to $183.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Barclays reduced their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $168.00 to $159.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 11th. Tudor Pickering raised Marathon Petroleum from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating and set a $170.00 price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Marathon Petroleum has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $181.27.

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.