Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO) VP Sells $1,417,822.51 in Stock

Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO) VP Michael A. Henderson sold 51,389 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.59, for a total transaction of $1,417,822.51. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 114,828 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,168,104.52. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink.

Marathon Oil Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MRO traded down $0.14 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $27.43. 11,674,430 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 9,943,714. The company has a market cap of $15.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.75 and a beta of 2.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a current ratio of 0.40. Marathon Oil Co. has a one year low of $21.63 and a one year high of $29.56. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $23.95 and a 200 day moving average of $25.07.

Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) last released its 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. Marathon Oil had a return on equity of 14.09% and a net margin of 23.20%. The firm had revenue of $1.69 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.66 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.88 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Marathon Oil Co. will post 2.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Oil Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 21st were given a $0.11 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 20th. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.60%. Marathon Oil’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.19%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its position in Marathon Oil by 57.4% during the 3rd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 607,336 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $16,246,000 after purchasing an additional 221,388 shares during the period. LSV Asset Management lifted its stake in Marathon Oil by 3.3% in the 3rd quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 4,692,600 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $125,527,000 after buying an additional 150,440 shares in the last quarter. Comerica Bank purchased a new stake in Marathon Oil in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $5,235,000. Pathstone Family Office LLC lifted its stake in Marathon Oil by 222.3% in the 3rd quarter. Pathstone Family Office LLC now owns 67,851 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $1,815,000 after buying an additional 46,796 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Marathon Oil by 9.3% in the 3rd quarter. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC now owns 849,254 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $22,718,000 after buying an additional 71,988 shares in the last quarter. 77.24% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MRO has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Marathon Oil from $28.00 to $27.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Benchmark raised their price target on shares of Marathon Oil from $25.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on shares of Marathon Oil from $34.00 to $32.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. Morgan Stanley restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $25.00 price target (down previously from $27.00) on shares of Marathon Oil in a research note on Monday, December 11th. Finally, Truist Financial dropped their price target on shares of Marathon Oil from $38.00 to $35.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Marathon Oil has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $31.62.

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.