Balboa Wealth Partners Invests $325,000 in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Balboa Wealth Partners bought a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor bought 1,996 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock, valued at approximately $325,000.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Crewe Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the 1st quarter worth approximately $29,000. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 88.9% during the third quarter. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC now owns 170 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Marathon Petroleum in the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. Wellington Shields & Co. LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the 1st quarter worth $40,000. Finally, TruNorth Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the 2nd quarter worth $35,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.77% of the company’s stock.

Marathon Petroleum Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of MPC stock opened at $157.51 on Friday. 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 $50.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $159.23 and a 200 day moving average price of $168.73. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a fifty-two week low of $140.98 and a fifty-two week high of $221.11.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 5th. The oil and gas company reported $1.87 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.90. The firm had revenue of $35.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.34 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 3.15% and a return on equity of 16.19%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $8.14 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 9.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, November 5th that permits the company to buyback $5.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the oil and gas company to reacquire up to 10% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Marathon Petroleum Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be issued a $0.91 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.31%. This is a boost from Marathon Petroleum’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. Marathon Petroleum’s payout ratio is 26.15%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently issued reports on MPC. Tudor Pickering cut shares of Marathon Petroleum from a “strong-buy” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Monday, September 9th. Bank of America started coverage on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $174.00 price target for the company. Mizuho decreased their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $198.00 to $193.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, September 16th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $196.00 to $183.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co. cut Marathon Petroleum from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, September 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Marathon Petroleum has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $185.07.

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.