Principal Financial Group Inc. Has $343.53 Million Stake in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Principal Financial Group Inc. cut its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,108,726 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 10,963 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $343,533,000 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. Crewe Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Marathon Petroleum in the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Marathon Petroleum in the third quarter valued at about $30,000. Wellington Shields & Co. LLC bought a new stake in Marathon Petroleum during the first quarter worth about $40,000. TruNorth Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Marathon Petroleum during the second quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in Marathon Petroleum in the 2nd quarter valued at about $35,000. 76.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Marathon Petroleum Price Performance

MPC stock opened at $155.20 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 1.31. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a 52-week low of $140.98 and a 52-week high of $221.11. The company has a market capitalization of $51.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.16, a PEG ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $161.30 and a 200-day moving average price of $170.32.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The oil and gas company reported $1.87 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.97 by $0.90. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 24.05% and a net margin of 4.79%. The firm had revenue of $35.37 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.34 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $8.14 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 8.71 EPS for the current year.

Marathon Petroleum announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Tuesday, November 5th that permits the company to buyback $5.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the oil and gas company to repurchase up to 10% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Marathon Petroleum Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.91 per share. This is a positive change from Marathon Petroleum’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 20th. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.35%. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.34%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently issued reports on MPC shares. Scotiabank reduced their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $191.00 to $170.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $222.00 to $231.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 15th. Tudor Pickering cut Marathon Petroleum from a “strong-buy” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, September 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $172.00 to $171.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $196.00 to $183.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $185.67.

Marathon Petroleum 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.