Back to top

Image: Bigstock

Marathon Petroleum (MPC) Rises But Trails Market: What Investors Should Know

Read MoreHide Full Article

Marathon Petroleum (MPC - Free Report) closed at $151.97 in the latest trading session, marking a +0.6% move from the prior day. The stock lagged the S&P 500's daily gain of 0.82%. On the other hand, the Dow registered a loss of 0.22%, and the technology-centric Nasdaq increased by 1.77%.

The refiner's stock has dropped by 2.67% in the past month, falling short of the Oils-Energy sector's loss of 2.1% and the S&P 500's gain of 0.8%.

Investors will be eagerly watching for the performance of Marathon Petroleum in its upcoming earnings disclosure. The company is predicted to post an EPS of $0.60, indicating an 84.92% decline compared to the equivalent quarter last year. In the meantime, our current consensus estimate forecasts the revenue to be $31.93 billion, indicating a 13.29% decline compared to the corresponding quarter of the prior year.

Regarding the entire year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates forecast earnings of $10.03 per share and revenue of $138.87 billion, indicating changes of -57.55% and -7.61%, respectively, compared to the previous year.

It's also important for investors to be aware of any recent modifications to analyst estimates for Marathon Petroleum. These latest adjustments often mirror the shifting dynamics of short-term business patterns. As a result, we can interpret positive estimate revisions as a good sign for the company's business outlook.

Our research reveals that these estimate alterations are directly linked with the stock price performance in the near future. To exploit this, we've formed the Zacks Rank, a quantitative model that includes these estimate changes and presents a viable rating system.

Ranging from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), the Zacks Rank system has a proven, outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks returning an average of +25% annually since 1988. Within the past 30 days, our consensus EPS projection has moved 1.56% higher. Marathon Petroleum is currently a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

Valuation is also important, so investors should note that Marathon Petroleum has a Forward P/E ratio of 15.06 right now. This represents a discount compared to its industry's average Forward P/E of 15.81.

We can also see that MPC currently has a PEG ratio of 2.51. This metric is used similarly to the famous P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also takes into account the stock's expected earnings growth rate. The Oil and Gas - Refining and Marketing industry had an average PEG ratio of 2.48 as trading concluded yesterday.

The Oil and Gas - Refining and Marketing industry is part of the Oils-Energy sector. With its current Zacks Industry Rank of 204, this industry ranks in the bottom 19% of all industries, numbering over 250.

The Zacks Industry Rank evaluates the power of our distinct industry groups by determining the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks forming the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.

Keep in mind to rely on Zacks.com to watch all these stock-impacting metrics, and more, in the succeeding trading sessions.


See More Zacks Research for These Tickers


Normally $25 each - click below to receive one report FREE:


Marathon Petroleum Corporation (MPC) - free report >>

Published in