Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO) Shares Acquired by Sage Mountain Advisors LLC

Sage Mountain Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO) by 6.5% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 9,105 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after purchasing an additional 555 shares during the quarter. Sage Mountain Advisors LLC’s holdings in Marathon Oil were worth $220,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Smithfield Trust Co boosted its position in Marathon Oil by 367.9% during the 3rd quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 1,020 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 802 shares during the period. NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new position in Marathon Oil during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Anchor Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Marathon Oil during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Central Bank & Trust Co. acquired a new position in Marathon Oil during the 4th quarter worth $41,000. Finally, AlphaMark Advisors LLC boosted its position in Marathon Oil by 159.6% during the 3rd quarter. AlphaMark Advisors LLC now owns 2,388 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $64,000 after acquiring an additional 1,468 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.24% of the company’s stock.

Marathon Oil Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of Marathon Oil stock opened at $27.82 on Wednesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $26.44 and its 200-day moving average is $25.40. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.90 billion, a PE ratio of 10.87 and a beta of 2.22. The company has a quick ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. Marathon Oil Co. has a 12-month low of $21.63 and a 12-month high of $30.06.

Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 22nd. The oil and gas producer reported $0.69 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.62 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $1.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.66 billion. Marathon Oil had a return on equity of 14.09% and a net margin of 23.20%. Marathon Oil’s quarterly revenue was down 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.88 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Marathon Oil Co. will post 2.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Marathon Oil Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 11th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 21st were given a dividend of $0.11 per share. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 20th. Marathon Oil’s payout ratio is 17.19%.

Insider Activity at Marathon Oil

In related news, insider Patrick Wagner sold 36,094 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.65, for a total transaction of $997,999.10. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 140,829 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,893,921.85. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other Marathon Oil news, CEO Lee M. Tillman sold 80,647 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.94, for a total value of $2,172,630.18. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 596,330 shares in the company, valued at $16,065,130.20. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Patrick Wagner sold 36,094 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.65, for a total value of $997,999.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 140,829 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,893,921.85. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 281,332 shares of company stock valued at $7,644,903. Company insiders own 0.42% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MRO has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on Marathon Oil from $39.00 to $36.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Raymond James reduced their price target on Marathon Oil from $35.00 to $32.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $32.00 price target on shares of Marathon Oil in a research report on Tuesday. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $33.00 price objective on shares of Marathon Oil in a report on Tuesday, March 5th. Finally, UBS Group cut their price objective on Marathon Oil from $28.00 to $27.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $32.66.

About Marathon Oil

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.