Shares of Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO) have been given an average recommendation of “Hold” by the thirty-one analysts that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eighteen have given a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $8.29.
A number of research firms have recently commented on MRO. US Capital Advisors reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Marathon Oil in a research note on Friday, August 21st. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Marathon Oil from $5.00 to $7.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 11th. Wells Fargo & Company raised Marathon Oil from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $11.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Northland Securities initiated coverage on Marathon Oil in a research report on Monday, September 14th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $5.40 price objective on the stock. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price objective on Marathon Oil from $6.50 to $4.75 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 14th.
A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MRO. Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Marathon Oil during the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,260,000. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV boosted its stake in shares of Marathon Oil by 149.1% in the third quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 609,244 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $2,492,000 after buying an additional 364,682 shares during the last quarter. Advisory Resource Group boosted its stake in shares of Marathon Oil by 3.7% in the third quarter. Advisory Resource Group now owns 58,078 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $238,000 after buying an additional 2,054 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its stake in shares of Marathon Oil by 6.3% in the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 64,821 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $265,000 after buying an additional 3,867 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Eudaimonia Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Marathon Oil in the third quarter worth about $176,000. 66.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Shares of NYSE MRO traded down $0.18 during trading on Friday, reaching $6.73. The company had a trading volume of 29,291,192 shares, compared to its average volume of 31,892,826. Marathon Oil has a 12-month low of $3.02 and a 12-month high of $14.07. The stock has a market cap of $5.31 billion, a PE ratio of -4.67 and a beta of 3.40. The business’s 50-day moving average is $5.71 and its 200 day moving average is $5.42. The company has a quick ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50.
Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) last released its earnings results on Monday, November 9th. The oil and gas producer reported ($0.28) EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.28). Marathon Oil had a negative return on equity of 6.64% and a negative net margin of 32.64%. The firm had revenue of $754.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $762.20 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.14 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 43.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Marathon Oil will post -1.26 earnings per share for the current year.
The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 18th were paid a $0.03 dividend. This represents a $0.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.78%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 17th. Marathon Oil’s payout ratio is 16.00%.
Marathon Oil Company Profile
Marathon Oil Corporation operates as an independent exploration and production company in the United States and Equatorial Guinea. The company engages in the exploration, production, and marketing of crude oil and condensate, natural gas liquids, and natural gas; and the production and marketing of products manufactured from natural gas, such as liquefied natural gas and methanol, as well as owns and operates 32 central gathering and treating facilities and the Sugarloaf gathering system, a 42-mile natural gas pipeline through Karnes and Atascosa Counties.
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