Marathon Petroleum (MPC) Ascends While Market Falls: Some Facts to Note

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Marathon Petroleum (MPC) closed the most recent trading day at $155.39, moving +1.67% from the previous trading session. The stock's change was more than the S&P 500's daily loss of 0.07%.

Shares of the refiner have appreciated by 4.21% over the course of the past month, outperforming the Oils-Energy sector's gain of 0.36% and the S&P 500's gain of 3.98%.

The investment community will be closely monitoring the performance of Marathon Petroleum in its forthcoming earnings report. The company is scheduled to release its earnings on January 30, 2024. The company's earnings per share (EPS) are projected to be $2.42, reflecting a 63.61% decrease from the same quarter last year. Alongside, our most recent consensus estimate is anticipating revenue of $33.82 billion, indicating a 15.65% downward movement from the same quarter last year.

Investors should also note any recent changes to analyst estimates for Marathon Petroleum. These revisions typically reflect the latest short-term business trends, which can change frequently. As a result, we can interpret positive estimate revisions as a good sign for the company's business outlook.

Our research shows that these estimate changes are directly correlated with near-term stock prices. We developed the Zacks Rank to capitalize on this phenomenon. Our system takes these estimate changes into account and delivers a clear, actionable rating model.

The Zacks Rank system, which ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), has an impressive outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks generating an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Within the past 30 days, our consensus EPS projection has moved 6.65% lower. Marathon Petroleum is holding a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold) right now.

Investors should also note Marathon Petroleum's current valuation metrics, including its Forward P/E ratio of 10.42. This represents a premium compared to its industry's average Forward P/E of 10.11.

Meanwhile, MPC's PEG ratio is currently 1.74. This popular metric is similar to the widely-known P/E ratio, with the difference being that the PEG ratio also takes into account the company's expected earnings growth rate. The Oil and Gas - Refining and Marketing was holding an average PEG ratio of 1.52 at yesterday's closing price.

The Oil and Gas - Refining and Marketing industry is part of the Oils-Energy sector. This industry, currently bearing a Zacks Industry Rank of 102, finds itself in the top 41% echelons of all 250+ industries.

The Zacks Industry Rank assesses the strength of our separate industry groups by calculating the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks contained within 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.

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