TCG Advisory Services LLC Cuts Stock Position in Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO)

TCG Advisory Services LLC lessened its position in Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO) by 4.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 15,602 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 668 shares during the quarter. TCG Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Marathon Oil were worth $377,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in Marathon Oil by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 26,569 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $711,000 after purchasing an additional 421 shares during the period. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Marathon Oil by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. now owns 23,631 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $571,000 after purchasing an additional 477 shares during the last quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC grew its stake in Marathon Oil by 6.8% during the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 7,770 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $188,000 after buying an additional 494 shares during the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its holdings in shares of Marathon Oil by 12.1% in the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 4,878 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $118,000 after acquiring an additional 528 shares during the period. Finally, Estate Counselors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Marathon Oil by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Estate Counselors LLC now owns 55,385 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $1,482,000 after acquiring an additional 538 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.24% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marathon Oil

In other news, insider Patrick Wagner sold 36,094 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.65, for a total transaction of $997,999.10. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 140,829 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,893,921.85. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, VP Michael A. Henderson sold 51,389 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.59, for a total value of $1,417,822.51. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 114,828 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,168,104.52. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Patrick Wagner sold 36,094 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.65, for a total transaction of $997,999.10. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 140,829 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,893,921.85. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 281,332 shares of company stock worth $7,644,903. Company insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

Marathon Oil Stock Performance

MRO traded up $0.56 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $26.90. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,753,130 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,675,828. Marathon Oil Co. has a twelve month low of $21.81 and a twelve month high of $30.06. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $27.03 and a 200 day simple moving average of $25.38. The stock has a market cap of $15.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.98 and a beta of 2.22. The company has a current ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41.

Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The oil and gas producer reported $0.55 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.52 by $0.03. Marathon Oil had a net margin of 21.83% and a return on equity of 13.24%. The business had revenue of $1.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.56 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.67 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Marathon Oil Co. will post 2.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Marathon Oil Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be given a $0.11 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 14th. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.64%. Marathon Oil’s payout ratio is 18.18%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on MRO shares. Argus raised shares of Marathon Oil from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $31.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Marathon Oil in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $35.00 price objective for the company. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on Marathon Oil from $39.00 to $36.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on Marathon Oil from $26.50 to $30.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Marathon Oil from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $32.61.

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.