Janney Montgomery Scott LLC Cuts Stake in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 13.3% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 145,173 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 22,279 shares during the quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $23,650,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of MPC. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 400.0% during the 1st quarter. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC now owns 125 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC bought a new position in Marathon Petroleum during the first quarter worth $15,399,000. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division bought a new position in Marathon Petroleum during the first quarter worth $102,000. Wellington Shields & Co. LLC bought a new position in Marathon Petroleum during the first quarter worth $40,000. Finally, Commerce Bank lifted its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 1.5% during the first quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 36,425 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $7,340,000 after purchasing an additional 521 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.77% of the company’s stock.

Marathon Petroleum Trading Up 1.3 %

Shares of NYSE MPC opened at $144.94 on Tuesday. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a one year low of $140.98 and a one year high of $221.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $48.51 billion, a PE ratio of 7.62, a PEG ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a current ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $162.00 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $170.76.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The oil and gas company reported $4.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.09 by $1.03. The business had revenue of $38.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $36.66 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 24.05% and a net margin of 4.79%. The firm’s revenue was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $5.32 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 8.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.91 per share. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.51%. This is a positive change from Marathon Petroleum’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 20th. Marathon Petroleum’s payout ratio is currently 19.13%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MPC has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $196.00 to $182.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Citigroup cut their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $172.00 to $167.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. TD Cowen raised their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $187.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $172.00 to $171.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Tudor Pickering lowered Marathon Petroleum from a “strong-buy” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, September 9th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $187.00.

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.