River Global Investors LLP Sells 21,824 Shares of Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO)

River Global Investors LLP cut its holdings in shares of Marathon Oil Co. (NYSE:MRO) by 37.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 36,537 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 21,824 shares during the period. River Global Investors LLP’s holdings in Marathon Oil were worth $882,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MRO. Smithfield Trust Co lifted its stake in Marathon Oil by 367.9% during the third quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 1,020 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 802 shares during the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. bought a new position in shares of Marathon Oil in the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. Anchor Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Marathon Oil in the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. Central Bank & Trust Co. bought a new position in shares of Marathon Oil in the 4th quarter valued at $41,000. Finally, Planned Solutions Inc. bought a new position in shares of Marathon Oil in the 4th quarter valued at $58,000. 77.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Raymond James dropped their price target on Marathon Oil from $35.00 to $32.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $32.00 price target on shares of Marathon Oil in a research note on Friday. Argus raised Marathon Oil from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $31.00 target price for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 14th. Susquehanna reaffirmed a “positive” rating and set a $33.00 target price on shares of Marathon Oil in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, StockNews.com raised Marathon Oil from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $32.66.

Marathon Oil Trading Up 1.0 %

Marathon Oil stock traded up $0.25 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $26.34. 9,055,754 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 9,206,166. The company has a quick ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $27.03 and its 200 day simple moving average is $25.38. Marathon Oil Co. has a twelve month low of $21.63 and a twelve month high of $30.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.05 billion, a PE ratio of 10.88 and a beta of 2.22.

Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The oil and gas producer reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.52 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $1.55 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.56 billion. Marathon Oil had a return on equity of 13.22% and a net margin of 21.83%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.67 EPS. Research analysts predict that Marathon Oil Co. will post 2.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Marathon Oil Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be paid a $0.11 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 14th. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.67%. Marathon Oil’s dividend payout ratio is presently 18.18%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Patrick Wagner sold 39,969 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 176,923 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,757,459.47. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Marathon Oil news, insider Patrick Wagner sold 39,969 shares of Marathon Oil stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.89, for a total transaction of $1,074,766.41. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 176,923 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,757,459.47. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Lee M. Tillman sold 80,647 shares of Marathon Oil stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.94, for a total value of $2,172,630.18. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 596,330 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,065,130.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 281,332 shares of company stock worth $7,644,903 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

Marathon Oil 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.