Mizuho Has Lowered Expectations for Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) Stock Price

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) had its price target decreased by equities researchers at Mizuho from $457.00 to $440.00 in a research note issued on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “neutral” rating on the oil and gas company’s stock. Mizuho‘s target price would indicate a potential upside of 6.29% from the stock’s current price.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $318.00 to $518.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 13th. Evercore set a $330.00 price objective on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $453.00 to $458.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $376.00 to $472.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 21st. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Marathon Petroleum from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $424.06.

Marathon Petroleum Stock Performance

MPC stock traded up $1.10 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $413.95. The stock had a trading volume of 2,170,836 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,372,925. The firm has a market capitalization of $112.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.23, a P/E/G ratio of 0.10 and a beta of 0.53. Marathon Petroleum has a 52 week low of $161.93 and a 52 week high of $493.98. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $423.86 and a 200 day simple moving average of $301.03. The company has a current ratio of 1.45, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 3rd. The oil and gas company reported $26.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $25.37 by $1.56. The firm had revenue of $56.03 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $46.60 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a net margin of 8.27% and a return on equity of 55.82%. The business’s revenue was up 57.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $3.01 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Marathon Petroleum will post 66.31 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Shawn M. Lyon sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $375.75, for a total transaction of $375,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 11,194 shares in the company, valued at $4,206,145.50. This represents a 8.20% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Erin M. Brzezinski sold 570 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $362.79, for a total value of $206,790.30. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 1,576 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $571,757.04. This trade represents a 26.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 19,191 shares of company stock worth $6,905,127. Corporate insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Marathon Petroleum

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Marathon Petroleum in the second quarter valued at about $6,648,958,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in Marathon Petroleum in the 2nd quarter worth about $1,029,611,000. Bank of America Corp DE raised its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 1.6% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 2,595,084 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $633,668,000 after purchasing an additional 40,124 shares in the last quarter. Amundi boosted its holdings in Marathon Petroleum by 17.5% in the 2nd quarter. Amundi now owns 2,237,930 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $572,172,000 after purchasing an additional 332,551 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in Marathon Petroleum by 16.7% in the 2nd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,508,489 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $385,675,000 after purchasing an additional 215,686 shares during the period. 76.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Trending Headlines about Marathon Petroleum

These are some of the MPC headlines that stood out recently:

• Positive Sentiment: Investors have also been weighing strong Q3 earnings and cash returns: MPC reported adjusted earnings of $26.93 per share, returned $3.3 billion to shareholders, authorized another $5 billion in buybacks and raised its dividend 10%. Its planned $4.2 billion sale of two refineries could free funds for reinvestment and sharpen its portfolio. Marathon Petroleum Rises as Investors Continue to Digest Strong Q3 Results and Asset Sale
• Negative Sentiment: Mizuho lowered its price target to $440 from $457 and maintained a neutral rating. The new target still implies roughly 6.4% upside from the cited share price, but the reduction signals more restrained expectations. Mizuho stock recommendations
• Negative Sentiment: Reported open-market activity showed MPC insiders made no purchases and sold shares in the past six months, a possible cautionary signal, though insider sales alone do not establish a change in business outlook.

About Marathon Petroleum

Marathon Petroleum Corporation is an integrated downstream energy company focused on refining, marketing, and transporting petroleum products. Its refineries produce fuels and other products, including gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, asphalt, and petrochemical feedstocks. The company sells transportation fuels and related products through a network of branded locations and other wholesale and commercial channels, primarily in the United States. Its midstream operations, conducted largely through its affiliated partnership MPLX, include gathering, processing, and transporting natural gas and natural gas liquids, as well as storing and transporting crude oil and refined products.