Virtu Financial LLC Has $712,000 Position in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Virtu Financial LLC raised its holdings in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 13.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 4,373 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after buying an additional 515 shares during the quarter. Virtu Financial LLC’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $712,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in Marathon Petroleum by 342.1% in the third 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 in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of 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 buying an additional 1,304,372 shares during the period. ING Groep NV acquired a new stake in Marathon Petroleum in the 3rd quarter valued at $114,107,000. National Bank of Canada FI grew its position in Marathon Petroleum by 212.9% in the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 846,756 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $137,945,000 after acquiring an additional 576,119 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can raised 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 worth $217,560,000 after acquiring an additional 415,368 shares in the last quarter. 76.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marathon Petroleum

In related news, Director Jeffrey C. Campbell purchased 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 4th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $149.61 per share, with a total value of $897,660.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 6,090 shares in the company, valued at $911,124.90. The trade was a 6,666.67 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Scotiabank reduced their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $191.00 to $170.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $200.00 to $190.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Bank of America assumed coverage on Marathon Petroleum in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $174.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $183.00 to $186.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $172.00 to $167.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Marathon Petroleum has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $185.27.

Marathon Petroleum Stock Performance

Marathon Petroleum stock opened at $145.56 on Friday. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a 1 year low of $142.84 and a 1 year high of $221.11. The company’s 50-day moving average is $155.10 and its two-hundred day moving average is $164.96. 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 market cap of $46.78 billion, a PE ratio of 11.53, a PEG ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 1.39.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 5th. The oil and gas company reported $1.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.90. The firm had revenue of $35.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.34 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 3.15% and a return on equity of 16.19%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $8.14 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 9.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Marathon Petroleum declared that its Board of Directors has authorized 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 repurchase up to 10% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Marathon Petroleum Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 20th were issued a $0.91 dividend. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.50%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, November 20th. This is an increase from Marathon Petroleum’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.84%.

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.