Barclays Has Lowered Expectations for Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) Stock Price

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) had its price target dropped by stock analysts at Barclays from $168.00 to $159.00 in a research report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “overweight” rating on the oil and gas company’s stock. Barclays‘s price target would indicate a potential upside of 2.46% from the company’s previous close.

Several other research analysts also recently commented on MPC. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $222.00 to $231.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 15th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $196.00 to $183.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co. downgraded Marathon Petroleum from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, September 9th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Marathon Petroleum in a report on Thursday, July 18th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $200.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Scotiabank decreased their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $191.00 to $170.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Marathon Petroleum has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $185.07.

Marathon Petroleum Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MPC opened at $155.19 on Monday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $160.06 and its 200 day moving average is $169.17. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94. Marathon Petroleum has a 52 week low of $140.98 and a 52 week high of $221.11. The stock has a market cap of $49.88 billion, a PE ratio of 12.30, a PEG ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 1.38.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The oil and gas company reported $1.87 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.90. The company had revenue of $35.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.34 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 16.19% and a net margin of 3.15%. Marathon Petroleum’s revenue for the quarter was down 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $8.14 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Marathon Petroleum will post 9.41 earnings per share for the current year.

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Marathon Petroleum

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. WR Wealth Planners LLC boosted its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 15.2% in the 2nd quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 431 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $75,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares in the last quarter. D Orazio & Associates Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 3.2% during the first quarter. D Orazio & Associates Inc. now owns 1,894 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $382,000 after buying an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 5.0% during the second quarter. Legacy Advisors LLC now owns 1,238 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $215,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Latitude Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Marathon Petroleum by 3.6% in the 2nd quarter. Latitude Advisors LLC now owns 1,714 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $297,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SouthState Corp lifted its position in Marathon Petroleum by 1.5% in the 2nd quarter. SouthState Corp now owns 4,122 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $715,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. 76.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Marathon Petroleum

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.