Concentric Capital Strategies LP Invests $6.54 Million in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Concentric Capital Strategies LP acquired a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 40,146 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,540,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 19,153.8% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,311,182 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $213,605,000 after buying an additional 1,304,372 shares in the last quarter. Granite Bay Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Marathon Petroleum in the second quarter worth approximately $219,537,000. ING Groep NV acquired a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the 3rd quarter worth $114,107,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its holdings in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 980.3% during the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 684,718 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $118,785,000 after purchasing an additional 621,336 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can lifted its stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 45.4% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 1,329,422 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $217,560,000 after purchasing an additional 415,368 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.77% of the company’s stock.

Marathon Petroleum Trading Up 0.5 %

Marathon Petroleum stock opened at $156.15 on Monday. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a 12 month low of $140.98 and a 12 month high of $221.11. The stock has a market cap of $50.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 1.38. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $157.98 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $166.70. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last issued 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. The firm had revenue of $35.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.34 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 16.19% and a net margin of 3.15%. Marathon Petroleum’s quarterly revenue was down 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $8.14 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 9.59 EPS for the current year.

Marathon Petroleum Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th will be given a dividend of $0.91 per share. This is a positive change from Marathon Petroleum’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.33%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 20th. Marathon Petroleum’s payout ratio is 28.84%.

Marathon Petroleum announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, November 5th that authorizes the company to buyback $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the oil and gas company to purchase up to 10% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MPC has been the topic of several recent research reports. Bank of America initiated coverage on Marathon Petroleum in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $174.00 target price on the stock. Citigroup decreased their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $172.00 to $167.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Tudor Pickering lowered shares of Marathon Petroleum from a “strong-buy” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Monday, September 9th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $196.00 to $182.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, September 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $196.00 to $183.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $185.07.

About Marathon Petroleum

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.