Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. Sells 2,493 Shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 38.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 4,036 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 2,493 shares during the quarter. Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $658,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Founders Financial Securities LLC grew its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 22.8% in the 2nd quarter. Founders Financial Securities LLC now owns 4,972 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $863,000 after purchasing an additional 924 shares during the last quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 27.7% during the third quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 43,174 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $7,033,000 after buying an additional 9,355 shares during the last quarter. Holistic Planning LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the third quarter worth approximately $912,000. LRI Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the first quarter valued at approximately $97,000. Finally, Magnolia Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 353.4% in the 2nd quarter. Magnolia Capital Advisors LLC now owns 55,989 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $9,713,000 after acquiring an additional 43,639 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.77% of the company’s stock.

Marathon Petroleum Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MPC opened at $157.51 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $50.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.48, a P/E/G ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 1.38. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $159.23 and its 200 day simple moving average is $168.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 1.23 and a quick ratio of 0.76. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a fifty-two week low of $140.98 and a fifty-two week high of $221.11.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The oil and gas company reported $1.87 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.90. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 3.15% and a return on equity of 16.19%. The company had revenue of $35.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.34 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $8.14 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 9.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Marathon Petroleum declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, November 5th that allows the company to buyback $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the oil and gas company to reacquire up to 10% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Marathon Petroleum Increases Dividend

The firm 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 $0.91 dividend. This is an increase from Marathon Petroleum’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 20th. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio is 26.15%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently weighed in on MPC. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $172.00 to $171.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. TD Cowen reduced their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $174.00 to $170.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $172.00 to $167.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $200.00 to $190.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 4th. Finally, Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $168.00 to $145.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Two equities research 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 company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $185.07.

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.