Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. Raises Stock Position in Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO)

Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its position in Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO) by 184.7% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 23,626 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after purchasing an additional 15,326 shares during the quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Marathon Oil were worth $629,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. HWG Holdings LP bought a new stake in Marathon Oil during the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Founders Capital Management raised its position in shares of Marathon Oil by 100.0% during the 2nd quarter. Founders Capital Management now owns 1,000 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. Highbridge Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Marathon Oil during the 2nd quarter worth $29,000. Grove Bank & Trust grew its position in Marathon Oil by 77.4% in the second quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 1,066 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 465 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in Marathon Oil in the third quarter valued at $36,000. 77.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MRO has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Susquehanna dropped their target price on Marathon Oil from $39.00 to $37.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on shares of Marathon Oil from $27.61 to $28.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Citigroup reduced their target price on shares of Marathon Oil from $29.00 to $28.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Marathon Oil from $33.00 to $30.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price objective on Marathon Oil from $30.00 to $28.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $31.12.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Michael A. Henderson sold 38,000 shares of Marathon Oil stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.21, for a total transaction of $1,033,980.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 76,828 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,090,489.88. This trade represents a 33.09 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Dane E. Whitehead sold 52,008 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.50, for a total value of $1,430,220.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 100,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,750,000. The trade was a 34.21 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.35% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Marathon Oil Stock Performance

Shares of MRO opened at $28.59 on Friday. Marathon Oil Co. has a 52 week low of $21.81 and a 52 week high of $30.06. The company has a quick ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The stock has a market cap of $15.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.27 and a beta of 2.16. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $27.36 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $27.56.

Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.63 by $0.01. Marathon Oil had a net margin of 19.73% and a return on equity of 12.80%. The company had revenue of $1.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.70 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.77 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Marathon Oil Co. will post 2.36 EPS for the current year.

Marathon Oil Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.11 per share. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.54%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. Marathon Oil’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.88%.

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.