Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO) VP Michael A. Henderson Sells 38,000 Shares

Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO) VP Michael A. Henderson sold 38,000 shares of Marathon Oil stock in a transaction on Friday, September 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.21, for a total transaction of $1,033,980.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 76,828 shares in the company, valued at $2,090,489.88. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Marathon Oil Stock Down 1.5 %

Shares of NYSE MRO opened at $26.22 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. Marathon Oil Co. has a 52 week low of $21.81 and a 52 week high of $30.06. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $27.90 and a 200 day moving average price of $27.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.83 and a beta of 2.16.

Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.69 by ($0.06). The business had revenue of $1.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.69 billion. Marathon Oil had a return on equity of 13.81% and a net margin of 22.12%. The business’s revenue was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.48 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Marathon Oil Co. will post 2.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Oil Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 21st were given a dividend of $0.11 per share. This represents a $0.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.68%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 21st. Marathon Oil’s payout ratio is currently 18.18%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MRO has been the topic of several research reports. Scotiabank lowered their price objective on shares of Marathon Oil from $29.00 to $27.61 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 12th. Susquehanna lowered their price objective on shares of Marathon Oil from $39.00 to $37.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. Capital One Financial downgraded shares of Marathon Oil from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 5th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Marathon Oil in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $33.00 price objective on shares of Marathon Oil in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Marathon Oil currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $32.03.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Marathon Oil

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado raised its position in Marathon Oil by 374.5% during the fourth quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado now owns 73,592 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $1,778,000 after acquiring an additional 58,081 shares during the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC raised its position in shares of Marathon Oil by 137.1% in the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 304,331 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $7,353,000 after buying an additional 175,964 shares during the last quarter. Blackstone Inc. raised its position in shares of Marathon Oil by 23.1% in the fourth quarter. Blackstone Inc. now owns 79,901 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $1,930,000 after buying an additional 15,000 shares during the last quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Marathon Oil in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $5,051,000. Finally, Quadrature Capital Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Marathon Oil in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $6,837,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.24% of the company’s stock.

Marathon Oil Company Profile

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.