Analysts Set Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO) Price Target at $31.09

Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO) has been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eighteen brokerages that are covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $31.12.

MRO has been the subject of several recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Marathon Oil from $29.00 to $27.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on Marathon Oil from $34.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. Mizuho cut their target price on Marathon Oil from $34.00 to $32.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, September 16th. StockNews.com began coverage on Marathon Oil in a research report on Sunday, October 6th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Finally, Truist Financial cut their price objective on shares of Marathon Oil from $35.00 to $27.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, September 30th.

Marathon Oil Stock Down 1.0 %

MRO stock opened at $28.06 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $27.55 and its 200 day simple moving average is $27.74. The company has a market cap of $15.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.92 and a beta of 2.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a current ratio of 0.57. Marathon Oil has a fifty-two week low of $21.81 and a fifty-two week high of $30.06.

Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.69 by ($0.06). The firm had revenue of $1.71 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.69 billion. Marathon Oil had a return on equity of 13.81% and a net margin of 22.12%. Marathon Oil’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.48 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Marathon Oil will post 2.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Oil Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 21st were paid a dividend of $0.11 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 21st. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.57%. Marathon Oil’s payout ratio is 17.12%.

Insider Activity at Marathon Oil

In other Marathon Oil news, VP Michael A. Henderson sold 38,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.21, for a total transaction of $1,033,980.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 76,828 shares in the company, valued at $2,090,489.88. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other news, VP Michael A. Henderson sold 38,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.21, for a total value of $1,033,980.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 76,828 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,090,489.88. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Dane E. Whitehead sold 52,008 shares of Marathon Oil stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.50, for a total value of $1,430,220.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 100,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,750,000. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.35% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Marathon Oil

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of MRO. HWG Holdings LP purchased a new stake in Marathon Oil in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Riverview Trust Co bought a new stake in Marathon Oil during the first quarter valued at $27,000. Benjamin Edwards Inc. grew its position in Marathon Oil by 226.0% during the first quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 978 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 678 shares in the last quarter. Founders Capital Management increased its stake in Marathon Oil by 100.0% in the 2nd quarter. Founders Capital Management now owns 1,000 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 500 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Highbridge Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Marathon Oil in the 2nd quarter valued at about $29,000. 77.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Marathon Oil Company Profile

Marathon Oil Corporation, an independent exploration and production company, engages in exploration, production, and marketing of crude oil and condensate, natural gas liquids, and natural gas in the United States and internationally. The company also produces and markets products manufactured from natural gas, such as liquefied natural gas and methanol.