Korea Investment CORP Raises Stake in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Korea Investment CORP grew its holdings in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 5.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 256,928 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after buying an additional 13,362 shares during the period. Korea Investment CORP owned 0.08% of Marathon Petroleum worth $35,841,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. OLD Second National Bank of Aurora increased its position in Marathon Petroleum by 7.2% in the 4th quarter. OLD Second National Bank of Aurora now owns 994 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $139,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the period. Nixon Peabody Trust Co. increased its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Nixon Peabody Trust Co. now owns 2,068 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $288,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares during the period. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC now owns 4,271 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $596,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the period. American Trust grew its position in Marathon Petroleum by 5.3% in the 3rd quarter. American Trust now owns 1,397 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $228,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DT Investment Partners LLC increased its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 21.5% in the 4th quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC now owns 395 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $55,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.77% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently weighed in on MPC shares. Raymond James reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a report on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $183.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $170.00 price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $160.00 to $156.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Mizuho decreased their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $175.00 to $174.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 16th. 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 given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $180.21.

Insider Activity at Marathon Petroleum

In other Marathon Petroleum news, insider Ricky D. Hessling acquired 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $134.72 per share, with a total value of $269,440.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 12,162 shares in the company, 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 document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Evan Bayh bought 1,000 shares of Marathon Petroleum stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $133.70 per share, for a total transaction of $133,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 69,305 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,266,078.50. This trade represents a 1.46 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Marathon Petroleum Stock Performance

Shares of MPC opened at $144.05 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $148.74 and a two-hundred day moving average of $151.59. The stock has a market cap of $44.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.51, a PEG ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 1.39. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a 12-month low of $130.54 and a 12-month high of $221.11. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last posted its earnings results 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. The firm had revenue of $33.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.94 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 12.07% and a net margin of 2.45%. Marathon Petroleum’s revenue was down 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.98 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 8.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed 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. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.53%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 19th. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.66%.

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.