Berry Wealth Group LP Decreases Stock Holdings in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Berry Wealth Group LP trimmed its holdings in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 3.8% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 28,806 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 1,136 shares during the quarter. Marathon Petroleum makes up approximately 6.2% of Berry Wealth Group LP’s portfolio, making the stock its 9th largest holding. Berry Wealth Group LP’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $4,018,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC boosted its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC now owns 4,285 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $698,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the period. OLD Second National Bank of Aurora boosted its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 7.2% in the 4th quarter. OLD Second National Bank of Aurora now owns 994 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $139,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the period. American Trust boosted its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 5.3% in the 3rd quarter. American Trust now owns 1,397 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $228,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the period. Financial Partners Group LLC boosted its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 3.3% in the 3rd quarter. Financial Partners Group LLC now owns 2,220 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $362,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the period. Finally, Avior Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,171 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $303,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the period. 76.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marathon Petroleum

In other news, Director Jeffrey C. Campbell purchased 6,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 4th. The shares were acquired at an average price 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. This represents a 6,666.67 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Marathon Petroleum Stock Performance

Shares of Marathon Petroleum stock opened at $145.37 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $146.26 and its two-hundred day moving average is $158.08. The company has a market capitalization of $46.72 billion, a PE ratio of 11.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a 52 week low of $130.54 and a 52 week high of $221.11.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 5th. The oil and gas company reported $1.87 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.97 by $0.90. The company 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%. Marathon Petroleum’s quarterly revenue was down 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $8.14 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 8.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Marathon Petroleum declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Tuesday, November 5th that permits the company to buyback $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the oil and gas company to reacquire up to 10% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Marathon Petroleum Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 19th will be given a $0.91 dividend. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.50%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 19th. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.84%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on MPC shares. Scotiabank dropped their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $191.00 to $170.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Bank of America initiated coverage on Marathon Petroleum in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $174.00 price objective on the stock. Raymond James upped their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $190.00 to $192.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $170.00 price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $186.00 to $182.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus 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.