Secure Asset Management LLC Invests $335,000 in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Secure Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 2,405 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock, valued at approximately $335,000.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its position in Marathon Petroleum by 1,037.7% in the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 12,207 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $2,118,000 after purchasing an additional 11,134 shares during the period. AXA S.A. lifted its holdings in Marathon Petroleum by 142.2% in the second quarter. AXA S.A. now owns 50,526 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $8,765,000 after acquiring an additional 29,665 shares during the period. MBB Public Markets I LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the second quarter valued at about $4,467,000. Scientech Research LLC purchased a new stake in Marathon Petroleum during the second quarter worth about $1,763,000. Finally, Dorsey Wright & Associates increased its holdings in Marathon Petroleum by 147.6% in the second quarter. Dorsey Wright & Associates now owns 24,375 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $4,229,000 after buying an additional 14,532 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.77% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Jeffrey C. Campbell purchased 6,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on 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 purchase, the director now directly owns 6,090 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $911,124.90. The trade was a 6,666.67 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Marathon Petroleum Stock Performance

NYSE MPC opened at $151.43 on Friday. 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 company has a market capitalization of $48.67 billion, a PE ratio of 12.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 1.42. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $147.30 and its 200 day moving average price is $158.69. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a twelve month low of $130.54 and a twelve month high of $221.11.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The oil and gas company reported $1.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.90. The firm had revenue of $35.37 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $34.34 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 3.15% and a return on equity of 16.19%. Marathon Petroleum’s revenue was down 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $8.14 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 8.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Marathon Petroleum announced that its board has initiated a share buyback program 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 buy up to 10% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Marathon Petroleum Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th were issued a dividend of $0.91 per share. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.40%. This is an increase from Marathon Petroleum’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, November 20th. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.84%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Bank of America assumed coverage on Marathon Petroleum in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $174.00 price target on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $172.00 to $171.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $200.00 to $190.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Raymond James upped their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $190.00 to $192.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Scotiabank dropped their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $191.00 to $170.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Marathon Petroleum currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $181.20.

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.