KBC Group NV Increases Position in Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO)

KBC Group NV boosted its position in shares of Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO) by 227.8% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 163,231 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after purchasing an additional 113,429 shares during the quarter. KBC Group NV’s holdings in Marathon Oil were worth $4,346,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. HWG Holdings LP acquired a new stake in Marathon Oil during the second quarter worth approximately $26,000. Founders Capital Management grew its position in Marathon Oil by 100.0% during the second quarter. Founders Capital Management now owns 1,000 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 500 shares during the period. Highbridge Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Marathon Oil during the second quarter worth about $29,000. Grove Bank & Trust raised its holdings in shares of Marathon Oil by 77.4% in the 2nd quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 1,066 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 465 shares during the period. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Marathon Oil in the 3rd quarter valued at about $36,000. 77.24% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Marathon Oil

In other Marathon Oil news, insider Dane E. Whitehead sold 52,008 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.50, for a total value of $1,430,220.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 100,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,750,000. This represents a 34.21 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, 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 sale, the vice president now directly owns 76,828 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,090,489.88. This represents a 33.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Marathon Oil from $33.00 to $30.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 12th. UBS Group reduced their price target on Marathon Oil from $30.00 to $28.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. StockNews.com assumed coverage on Marathon Oil in a research note on Friday. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Marathon Oil from $35.00 to $34.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, Citigroup lowered their target price on Marathon Oil from $29.00 to $28.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, September 5th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Marathon Oil currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $31.12.

Marathon Oil Stock Down 0.9 %

Marathon Oil stock opened at $28.59 on Monday. Marathon Oil Co. has a 52 week low of $21.81 and a 52 week high of $30.06. The stock has a market cap of $15.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.27 and a beta of 2.16. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $27.36 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $27.56. The company has a current ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40.

Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.63 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $1.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.70 billion. Marathon Oil had a net margin of 19.73% and a return on equity of 12.80%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.77 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Marathon Oil Co. will post 2.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Oil Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a $0.11 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.54%. Marathon Oil’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.88%.

Marathon Oil 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.