Meridian Wealth Management LLC Sells 197 Shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Meridian Wealth Management LLC reduced its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 1.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 9,914 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 197 shares during the period. Meridian Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $1,383,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 342.1% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,593,729 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $911,274,000 after buying an additional 4,328,470 shares in the last quarter. ING Groep NV acquired a new stake in Marathon Petroleum in the 3rd quarter valued at about $114,107,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its position in Marathon Petroleum by 22.3% in the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,552,655 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $495,595,000 after acquiring an additional 647,045 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI increased its position in Marathon Petroleum by 212.9% in the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 846,756 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $137,945,000 after acquiring an additional 576,119 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its position in Marathon Petroleum by 1,204.8% in the 4th 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 acquiring an additional 501,441 shares in the last quarter. 76.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Marathon Petroleum Trading Down 2.9 %

Marathon Petroleum stock opened at $145.75 on Tuesday. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a 52 week low of $130.54 and a 52 week high of $221.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 1.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $46.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.68, a PEG ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 1.41. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $148.39 and a 200 day simple moving average of $155.21.

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

Marathon Petroleum announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, November 5th that allows the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the oil and gas company to purchase up to 10% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Marathon Petroleum Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.50%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 19th. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.66%.

Insider Transactions at Marathon Petroleum

In other Marathon Petroleum news, Director Jeffrey C. Campbell purchased 6,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 4th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $149.61 per share, for a total transaction of $897,660.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 6,090 shares in the company, valued at approximately $911,124.90. This represents a 6,666.67 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on MPC shares. Tudor Pickering upgraded Marathon Petroleum from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $182.00 to $183.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Mizuho dropped their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $175.00 to $174.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Barclays dropped their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $168.00 to $159.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Raymond James raised their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $190.00 to $192.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. 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 issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $181.27.

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.