J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. Decreases Stock Holdings in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 29.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,972 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 1,221 shares during the period. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $441,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,256,000. Greenleaf Trust grew its position in Marathon Petroleum by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 11,481 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,703,000 after buying an additional 416 shares during the period. Naples Money Management LLC bought a new stake in Marathon Petroleum during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,565,000. Zhang Financial LLC grew its position in Marathon Petroleum by 33.6% during the fourth quarter. Zhang Financial LLC now owns 4,037 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $599,000 after buying an additional 1,016 shares during the period. Finally, Fidelis Capital Partners LLC grew its position in Marathon Petroleum by 9.8% during the fourth quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,956 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $439,000 after buying an additional 265 shares during the period. 76.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Marathon Petroleum Price Performance

Marathon Petroleum stock opened at $199.72 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $190.68 and a 200-day moving average price of $165.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $71.97 billion, a PE ratio of 8.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.52. The company has a current ratio of 1.59, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a 12-month low of $104.32 and a 12-month high of $221.11.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, January 30th. The oil and gas company reported $3.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $1.77. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 6.44% and a return on equity of 30.58%. The firm had revenue of $36.26 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $34.90 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $6.65 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 8.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 19.42 EPS for the current year.

Marathon Petroleum Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 11th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 21st were issued a dividend of $0.825 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 20th. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.65%. Marathon Petroleum’s payout ratio is 14.02%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $159.00 to $204.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, April 5th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Marathon Petroleum from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 9th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $168.00 to $221.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $185.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, March 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $214.00 to $227.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $193.77.

Insider Activity at Marathon Petroleum

In related news, Director Kim K.W. Rucker sold 1,000 shares of Marathon Petroleum stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.35, for a total transaction of $170,350.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 23,446 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,994,026.10. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Marathon Petroleum 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.