Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. Trims Stock Holdings in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. reduced its stake in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 8.9% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 62,685 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 6,140 shares during the period. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $8,744,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in MPC. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 342.1% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,593,729 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $911,274,000 after purchasing an additional 4,328,470 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 8.8% in the third quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 2,905,610 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $473,353,000 after acquiring an additional 235,795 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can grew its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 45.4% during the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 1,329,422 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $217,560,000 after acquiring an additional 415,368 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Marathon Petroleum by 19,153.8% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,311,182 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $213,605,000 after acquiring an additional 1,304,372 shares during the period. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 17.7% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,197,401 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $207,186,000 after purchasing an additional 180,213 shares in the last quarter. 76.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Marathon Petroleum news, Director Jeffrey C. Campbell acquired 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 4th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $149.61 per share, with a total value of $897,660.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 6,090 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $911,124.90. The trade was a 6,666.67 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Marathon Petroleum Trading Down 1.2 %

NYSE:MPC opened at $150.82 on Wednesday. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a 12 month low of $130.54 and a 12 month high of $221.11. 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 company has a 50-day moving average price of $147.70 and a 200-day moving average price of $158.94. The stock has a market cap of $48.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.95, a P/E/G ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 1.42.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The oil and gas company reported $1.87 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.90. The firm had revenue of $35.37 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.34 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 16.19% and a net margin of 3.15%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $8.14 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 8.88 EPS for the current year.

Marathon Petroleum announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, November 5th that allows the company to buyback $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the oil and gas company to purchase up to 10% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Marathon Petroleum Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th were given a dividend of $0.91 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.41%. This is a positive change from Marathon Petroleum’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.84%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on MPC. Raymond James upped their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $190.00 to $192.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $200.00 to $190.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Barclays dropped their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $168.00 to $159.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $172.00 to $167.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $186.00 to $182.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $181.20.

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.