Brokerages Set Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO) Price Target at $30.94

Shares of Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO) have received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eighteen ratings firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $30.94.

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Susquehanna dropped their price target on shares of Marathon Oil from $39.00 to $37.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. Truist Financial cut their price objective on shares of Marathon Oil from $35.00 to $27.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, September 30th. Citigroup reduced their target price on Marathon Oil from $29.00 to $28.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. Scotiabank lifted their price target on Marathon Oil from $27.61 to $28.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Marathon Oil from $29.00 to $27.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st.

Insider Activity

In other Marathon Oil news, CEO Lee M. Tillman sold 256,591 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.07, for a total value of $7,459,100.37. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 596,330 shares in the company, valued at $17,335,313.10. The trade was a 30.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Patrick Wagner sold 36,094 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.84, for a total transaction of $1,040,950.96. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 104,735 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,020,557.40. This trade represents a 25.63 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Marathon Oil

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MRO. HWG Holdings LP bought a new position in shares of Marathon Oil during the 2nd quarter worth about $26,000. Highbridge Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Marathon Oil during the second quarter worth about $29,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Marathon Oil during the third quarter worth approximately $36,000. Kennebec Savings Bank bought a new position in shares of Marathon Oil in the third quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in Marathon Oil during the 3rd quarter valued at $51,000. 77.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Marathon Oil Stock Performance

NYSE:MRO opened at $28.55 on Friday. 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 has a twelve month low of $21.81 and a twelve month high of $30.06. The company has a market capitalization of $15.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.25 and a beta of 2.16. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $28.07 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $27.89.

Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.63 by $0.01. Marathon Oil had a net margin of 19.73% and a return on equity of 12.80%. The firm had revenue of $1.79 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.70 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.77 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Marathon Oil will post 2.34 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Oil Dividend Announcement

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

Marathon Oil Company 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.