Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) Price Target Cut to $27.61

Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) had its price target lowered by equities researchers at Scotiabank from $29.00 to $27.61 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “sector perform” rating on the oil and gas producer’s stock. Scotiabank’s price target would suggest a potential downside of 0.58% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other research firms also recently weighed in on MRO. Piper Sandler upped their price target on Marathon Oil from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Susquehanna boosted their price objective on shares of Marathon Oil from $33.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $32.00 target price on shares of Marathon Oil in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Marathon Oil in a research note on Sunday. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. Finally, Capital One Financial downgraded shares of Marathon Oil from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 5th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $32.06.

Marathon Oil Stock Up 1.7 %

Shares of NYSE:MRO traded up $0.47 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $27.77. 2,206,908 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,984,751. The firm has a market cap of $15.53 billion, a PE ratio of 11.48 and a beta of 2.19. Marathon Oil has a fifty-two week low of $21.81 and a fifty-two week high of $30.06. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $28.02 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $26.71. The company has a quick ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41.

Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.69 by ($0.06). The firm had revenue of $1.71 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.69 billion. Marathon Oil had a net margin of 22.12% and a return on equity of 13.81%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.48 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Marathon Oil will post 2.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Marathon Oil by 127.3% during the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,527,604 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $61,067,000 after purchasing an additional 1,415,639 shares during the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado boosted its position in shares of Marathon Oil by 374.5% in the fourth quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado now owns 73,592 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $1,778,000 after acquiring an additional 58,081 shares during the period. Corient Private Wealth LLC grew its stake in shares of Marathon Oil by 137.1% in the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 304,331 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $7,353,000 after acquiring an additional 175,964 shares in the last quarter. Blackstone Inc. increased its position in Marathon Oil by 23.1% during the fourth quarter. Blackstone Inc. now owns 79,901 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $1,930,000 after acquiring an additional 15,000 shares during the period. Finally, Westwood Holdings Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Marathon Oil in the 4th quarter worth about $5,051,000. 77.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Marathon Oil

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.