Marathon Petroleum MPC shares rallied 5.9% in the last trading session to close at $174.94. This move can be attributable to notable volume with a higher number of shares being traded than in a typical session. This compares to the stock's 13.3% loss over the past four weeks.
Marathon Petroleum's stock went up yesterday because oil prices rose a bit ($58.32 per barrel), after being lower for most of the day. This was partly because U.S. forces captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro over the weekend. Venezuela has the world's biggest oil reserves, but it hasn't been able to export much due to old equipment and issues with its oil infrastructure. Most of its oil goes to countries like Russia, Iran, and China, which aren't affected by U.S. sanctions. Venezuelan oil is also cheaper but harder to process, making it less attractive for U.S. companies. Meanwhile, OPEC+ decided not to change its oil production plans, which helped ease worries about oil supply. This improved investor sentiment and contributed to the rise in Marathon Petroleum's share price.
This refiner is expected to post quarterly earnings of $3.73 per share in its upcoming report, which represents a year-over-year change of +384.4%. Revenues are expected to be $30.58 billion, down 8.6% from the year-ago quarter.
Earnings and revenue growth expectations certainly give a good sense of the potential strength in a stock, but empirical research shows that trends in earnings estimate revisions are strongly correlated with near-term stock price movements.
For Marathon Petroleum, the consensus EPS estimate for the quarter has been revised 3.9% lower over the last 30 days to the current level. And a negative trend in earnings estimate revisions doesn't usually translate into price appreciation. So, make sure to keep an eye on MPC going forward to see if this recent jump can turn into more strength down the road.
The stock currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today's Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) stocks here >>>>
Marathon Petroleum belongs to the Zacks Oil and Gas - Refining and Marketing industry. Another stock from the same industry, Valvoline (VVV), closed the last trading session 3.4% higher at $29.84. Over the past month, VVV has returned -5.3%.
For Valvoline, the consensus EPS estimate for the upcoming report has changed -0.3% over the past month to $0.34. This represents a change of +6.3% from what the company reported a year ago. Valvoline currently has a Zacks Rank of #5 (Strong Sell).
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Marathon Petroleum Corporation (MPC): Free Stock Analysis Report Valvoline (VVV): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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