Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) Earns Buy Rating from Benchmark

Benchmark reiterated their buy rating on shares of Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) in a report issued on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $32.00 price target on the oil and gas producer’s stock.

A number of other analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on Marathon Oil from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a report on Friday, April 19th. Scotiabank boosted their target price on Marathon Oil from $35.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a sector outperform rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Mizuho boosted their target price on Marathon Oil from $28.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a report on Friday, March 22nd. Truist Financial boosted their target price on Marathon Oil from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Friday, April 5th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on Marathon Oil from $39.00 to $36.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 22nd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $32.66.

Marathon Oil Stock Up 0.1 %

MRO opened at $27.77 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.40 and a quick ratio of 0.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.85 and a beta of 2.22. The business has a 50-day moving average of $26.72 and a two-hundred day moving average of $25.44. Marathon Oil has a 12 month low of $21.63 and a 12 month high of $30.06.

Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 22nd. The oil and gas producer reported $0.69 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.62 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $1.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.66 billion. Marathon Oil had a return on equity of 14.09% and a net margin of 23.20%. The firm’s revenue was down 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.88 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Marathon Oil will post 2.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Marathon Oil Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be given a $0.11 dividend. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.58%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 14th. Marathon Oil’s payout ratio is 17.19%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marathon Oil

In other Marathon Oil news, insider Patrick Wagner sold 39,969 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.89, for a total value of $1,074,766.41. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 176,923 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,757,459.47. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, VP Michael A. Henderson sold 51,389 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.59, for a total transaction of $1,417,822.51. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 114,828 shares in the company, valued at $3,168,104.52. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Patrick Wagner sold 39,969 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.89, for a total value of $1,074,766.41. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 176,923 shares in the company, valued at $4,757,459.47. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 281,332 shares of company stock valued at $7,644,903 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.42% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Marathon Oil

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Oak Thistle LLC bought a new position in Marathon Oil during the fourth quarter worth $1,440,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its stake in Marathon Oil by 57.4% during the third quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 607,336 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $16,246,000 after purchasing an additional 221,388 shares during the last quarter. LSV Asset Management lifted its stake in Marathon Oil by 3.3% during the third quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 4,692,600 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $125,527,000 after purchasing an additional 150,440 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Marathon Oil during the fourth quarter worth $3,209,000. Finally, Ardevora Asset Management LLP lifted its stake in Marathon Oil by 20.4% during the fourth quarter. Ardevora Asset Management LLP now owns 449,551 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $10,861,000 after purchasing an additional 76,210 shares during the last quarter. 77.24% of the stock is currently 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.