Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Purchases 501,441 Shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC)

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its position in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) by 1,204.8% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 543,062 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after purchasing an additional 501,441 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.’s holdings in Marathon Petroleum were worth $75,757,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Gladius Capital Management LP bought a new stake in Marathon Petroleum during the third quarter valued at about $26,000. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 88.9% during the 3rd quarter. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC now owns 170 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the period. True Wealth Design LLC grew its holdings in Marathon Petroleum by 672.7% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 170 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 148 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Marathon Petroleum in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum during the third quarter worth approximately $33,000. 76.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Marathon Petroleum Stock Up 1.8 %

Shares of MPC opened at $152.05 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $48.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.05, a PEG ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 1.42. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a one year low of $130.54 and a one year high of $221.11. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $147.88 and its 200-day simple moving average is $159.57. 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 (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 16.19% and a net margin of 3.15%. The company had revenue of $35.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.34 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $8.14 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 14.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 9.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 20th were given a dividend of $0.91 per share. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.39%. This is a positive change from Marathon Petroleum’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 20th. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.84%.

Marathon Petroleum declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, November 5th that permits the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the oil and gas company to reacquire up to 10% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on MPC. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $168.00 to $159.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $172.00 to $171.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Scotiabank reduced their target price 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. Citigroup cut their price target on Marathon Petroleum from $172.00 to $167.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Mizuho decreased their price objective on Marathon Petroleum from $175.00 to $174.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 16th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $183.73.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Jeffrey C. Campbell acquired 6,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 4th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $149.61 per share, for a total transaction of $897,660.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 6,090 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $911,124.90. This represents a 6,666.67 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.21% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.