9,155 Shares in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) Acquired by Aspire Growth Partners LLC

Aspire Growth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund acquired 9,155 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,277,000. Marathon Petroleum accounts for 1.2% of Aspire Growth Partners LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 17th largest holding.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Virtu Financial LLC grew its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 13.3% during the third quarter. Virtu Financial LLC now owns 4,373 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $712,000 after acquiring an additional 515 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB boosted its holdings in Marathon Petroleum by 747.3% in the third quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 21,275 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $3,466,000 after purchasing an additional 18,764 shares during the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC increased its holdings in Marathon Petroleum by 121.0% during the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 17,445 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $2,842,000 after purchasing an additional 9,551 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 29.6% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 739 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $103,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New Hampshire boosted its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 27.8% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New Hampshire now owns 689 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $96,000 after buying an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. 76.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marathon Petroleum

In other news, Director Evan Bayh acquired 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were bought at an average price of $133.70 per share, with a total value of $133,700.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 69,305 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,266,078.50. This represents a 1.46 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Ricky D. Hessling bought 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $134.72 per share, with a total value of $269,440.00. Following the purchase, the insider now directly owns 12,162 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,638,464.64. This represents a 19.68 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.21% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Marathon Petroleum Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MPC opened at $141.53 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $137.08 and its two-hundred day moving average is $145.54. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.25, a PEG ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 1.04. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a 52 week low of $115.10 and a 52 week high of $184.77.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The oil and gas company reported $0.77 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.06 by $0.71. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 12.07% and a net margin of 2.45%. The firm had revenue of $33.47 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $31.94 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $3.98 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 8.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Marathon Petroleum Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 21st will be given a $0.91 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 21st. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.57%. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.66%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on MPC. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $175.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Raymond James decreased their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $193.00 to $183.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Barclays reduced their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $161.00 to $141.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $160.00 to $156.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $185.00 to $175.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Marathon Petroleum has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $174.21.

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.