Polaris Capital Management LLC Has $29.43 Million Holdings in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Polaris Capital Management LLC lowered its holdings in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 0.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 210,994 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 500 shares during the period. Polaris Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $29,434,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in MPC. Peterson Wealth Services raised its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 5.3% in the 4th quarter. Peterson Wealth Services now owns 17,517 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $2,444,000 after buying an additional 887 shares in the last quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the 4th quarter worth $2,988,000. Summit Trail Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 31.2% in the fourth quarter. Summit Trail Advisors LLC now owns 18,937 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $2,642,000 after buying an additional 4,508 shares in the last quarter. Sapient Capital LLC raised its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 14.5% during the fourth quarter. Sapient Capital LLC now owns 2,350 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $328,000 after acquiring an additional 298 shares in the last quarter. Finally, swisspartners Advisors Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 11.9% in the fourth quarter. swisspartners Advisors Ltd now owns 22,065 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $3,078,000 after acquiring an additional 2,340 shares during the last quarter. 76.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Marathon Petroleum Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MPC opened at $153.84 on Tuesday. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a 12 month low of $130.54 and a 12 month high of $221.11. The company has a 50 day moving average of $145.91 and a 200 day moving average of $157.51. 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 stock has a market cap of $49.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.49, a P/E/G ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 1.41.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The oil and gas company reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.06 by $0.71. The firm had revenue of $33.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.94 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 12.07% and a net margin of 2.45%. The company’s revenue was down 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.98 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 8.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.91 per share. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.37%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 19th. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.66%.

Marathon Petroleum declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, November 5th that allows the company to buyback $5.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the oil and gas company to repurchase up to 10% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $182.00 to $183.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Mizuho dropped their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $175.00 to $174.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 16th. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $168.00 to $159.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Bank of America started coverage on Marathon Petroleum in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $174.00 target price for the company. Finally, Tudor Pickering upgraded Marathon Petroleum from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Marathon Petroleum presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $181.27.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Jeffrey C. Campbell bought 6,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 4th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $149.61 per share, for a total transaction of $897,660.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 6,090 shares in the company, valued at approximately $911,124.90. This trade represents a 6,666.67 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.