4-Star Stocks Poised to Pop: Marathon Petroleum
Based on the aggregated intelligence of 180,000-plus investors participating in Motley Fool CAPS, the Fool's free investing community, refinery operator Marathon Petroleum (NYS: MPC) has earned a respected four-star ranking.
With that in mind, let's take a closer look at Marathon's business and see what CAPS investors are saying about the stock right now.
Marathon facts
Headquarters (Founded) | Findlay, Ohio (spun off from Marathon Oil (NYS: MRO) , July 2011) |
Market Cap | $13 billion |
Industry | Oil and gas refining and marketing |
Trailing-12-Month Revenue | $66.8 billion |
Management | CEO Gary Heminger |
Trailing-12-Month Operating Margin | 4.3% |
Cash/Debt | $1.6 billion / $3.3 billion |
Dividend Yield | 2.0% |
Sources: Capital IQ (a division of Standard & Poor's) and Motley Fool CAPS.
On CAPS, 94% of the 31 members who have rated Marathon believe the stock will outperform the S&P 500 going forward. These bulls include All-Star jahartmu, who is ranked in the top 10% of our community, and dsmo06.
Just last month, jahartmu tapped the stock as a solid selection: "I'm bullish on MPC for the same reason I'm bullish on [Marathon Oil]: oil will remain valuable even when the next great energy breakthrough hits, and Marathon is well-positioned in the industry."
Currently, Marathon Petroleum even trades at a cheapish P/E of 6.8. That represents a discount to rivals like Exxon (9.3) and Valero (15.7).
CAPS member dsmo06 offers a cautiously optimistic take on the stock:
MPC is likely the best performer in a terrible industry. In the short term, MPC's refineries are well-positioned to take advantage of great crack spreads in the Midwest. Several of MPC's refineries are excellent (and very profitable) operations. ...
I'm holding onto shares of both MRO and MPC for now. I have complete faith in MRO, but I am keeping a closer eye on MPC. Once things start to look sour, I am running for the exit. In the meantime, I'm going to sit back and collect the dividend.
What do you think about Marathon, or any other stock for that matter? If you want to retire rich, you need to put together the best portfolio you can. Owning exceptional stocks is a surefire way to secure your financial future, and on Motley Fool CAPS, thousands of investors are working every day to find them. CAPS is 100% free, so get started!
Interested in another easy way to track Marathon?Add it to your watchlist.
At the time thisarticle was published Fool contributor Brian Pacampara owns no position in any of the companies mentioned. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days.We Fools don't all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Fool's disclosure policy always gets a perfect score.
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