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MPC·Marathon Petroleum Corporation

$424.66
+2.70 (+0.64%)
Market Closed (Overnight)$425.30+0.64 (+0.15%)
High
$428.00
Open
$420.27
Market Cap
117.75B
52W High
$428.00
Low
$416.00
P. Close
$424.66
P/E
13.77
52W Low
$161.93
Fwd P/E
9.96
DailyIQ Est.
$382.81
Inst. Ownership
3.1%
Short Interest
2.75%
Days to Cover
3.0
Technical Score (1D)
100
BUY
News Sentiment
64
BULLISH
Marathon Petroleum’s latest earnings guidance shows a projected EPS surge of 669 % to $23.15 for the quarter, while revenue is expected to dip 8.4 % to $32.84 billion, a sharp contrast that signals the company’s ability to generate profit even as top‑line sales shrink. The 452‑plus‑percent jump in annual earnings guidance, coupled with a 14.5 % rise in revenue, underlines the firm’s robust refining margins and suggests that the current valuation may already be reflecting a significant upside. This earnings outlook is likely to keep the stock buoyant over the next 1–10 trading days, as investors weigh the high EPS growth against the modest revenue decline. The upcoming third‑quarter earnings conference call on November 3 at 11 a.m. EST will be the next key event; the company will release its financial results and investor materials ahead of the call, so traders should monitor the pre‑call releases for any guidance revisions or operational commentary that could confirm or temper the projected EPS surge. Analysts caution that Marathon’s 150 % YTD gain and proximity to 52‑week highs may have priced in much of the upside, raising the risk of a pullback if margins compress or refinery utilization falls. The firm’s strong crack spread and refining margins remain the primary growth drivers, but any shift in crude supply dynamics or fuel demand could erode those margins. In a rising‑rate environment, Marathon is still highlighted as a relative price strength pick, indicating resilience amid broader market volatility; however, the weak setup rating in the Minervini Trend Template suggests that the current entry point may not be optimal, so traders should watch for a clearer catalyst before committing significant capital. Overall, the combination of explosive EPS growth, modest revenue decline, and the upcoming earnings call creates a short‑term bullish case, but the potential for margin compression and valuation concerns warrants close attention to the Q3 results and any updates on refinery utilization and crude supply.
Earnings Summary
Marathon Petroleum Corporation is a fully integrated downstream energy company operating primarily in the United States, with core activities in refining, midstream logistics, and renewable diesel production. The company’s refining segment is a key driver of earnings, benefiting from high crack spreads and robust fuel demand. In Q4 2024, MPC posted revenue of $33.466 billion and EPS of $0.77, a significant beat over the $0.0201 estimate, while Q1 2025 revenue fell to $31.85 billion and EPS dipped to $-0.24, missing the $-0.54274 forecast. The company rebounded in Q2 2025 with revenue of $34.101 billion and EPS of $3.96, surpassing the $3.22001 estimate, and maintained strong performance in Q3 2025 with $35.849 billion revenue and $3.01 EPS versus a $3.16366 estimate. Q4 2025 revenue rose to $33.422 billion and EPS reached $4.07, beating the $1.28186 estimate, but Q1 2026 revenue declined to $34.568 billion and EPS fell to $1.65, well below the $9.51002 forecast. Historically, MPC has exhibited a pattern of high earnings volatility tied to margin expansion, with revenue growth generally positive but EPS swings reflecting margin sensitivity. Recent news highlights a sharp rise in U.S. refiner margins due to geopolitical supply disruptions, record crack spreads, and diesel price surges, all of which have bolstered MPC’s profitability and attracted analyst upgrades. Investors should watch for changes in crack spreads, refinery utilization rates, and geopolitical developments that could compress margins, as these factors will be critical in the next earnings cycle. Key watch points include monitoring U.S. refinery throughput data, crude pricing shifts, and any corporate actions such as buybacks or dividend adjustments that may signal management’s confidence in sustaining the current refining upside.

EPS

EstBeatMiss
$-1.80$4.87$11.54$18.21$24.88Q2'25Q3'25Q4'25Q1'26Q2'26Q3'26
QtrEstActual+/−
Q3'26$21.80 - -
Q2'26$13.86$17.73+27.9%
Q1'26$9.51$1.65-82.6%
Q4'25$1.28$4.07+217.5%
Q3'25$3.16$3.01-4.9%
Q2'25$3.22$3.96+23.0%

Revenue

EstBeatMiss
$25.8B$33.3B$40.8B$48.3B$55.8BQ2'25Q3'25Q4'25Q1'26Q2'26Q3'26
QtrEstActual+/−
Q3'26$42.9B - -
Q2'26$42.5B$52.3B+23.1%
Q1'26$40.1B$34.6B-13.7%
Q4'25$29.2B$33.4B+14.3%
Q3'25 - $35.8B -
Q2'25 - $34.1B -

Market Data

MPC Stock Snapshot

BUY100/100
$425.30+$0.64 (0.2%)
Market cap
117.75B
P/E ratio
13.8
Day range
$416.00 – $428.00
News sentiment
64/100 · Bullish
Analyst target
$370.17 (-13.0%)
Consensus
Buy · 27 analysts
52-week range+162.6% off low · -0.6% from high
$161.93$428.00
Price $425.30 DailyIQ Est. $382.81

Marathon Petroleum Corporation screens well technically, with price sitting near its 52-week high. The stock is liquid enough that positioning changes get absorbed without distorting the trend.

Reverse DCF

What growth is priced into MPC?

FAIR

At today's price, Marathon Petroleum Corporation needs to grow free cash flow about 12.9% a year for the next 10 years to justify its valuation at a 7.42% cost of capital. Over its actual history it has compounded free cash flow at 12.5% a year, so the market is asking for 0.5 percentage points above its own delivered rate. On that basis MPC looks priced roughly in line with its own growth record.

Implied FCF growth
12.9%
Historical FCF CAGR
12.5%
Growth gap
+0.5 pts
Verdict
FAIR
Discount rate (WACC)
7.42%
Beta
0.70

Behaviour On Record

What MPC's own history says about today's numbers

Realized volatility (21d)
22.8% 15th pct
Below its peak
0.0%
vs 200-day average
+69.7%
Up days (1y)
59%

Marathon Petroleum Corporation is currently running 22.8% annualised volatility over the last 21 sessions. Measured against MPC's own 13 years of daily returns rather than a market-wide average, that is the 15th percentile unusually subdued by its own history, against a typical reading of 30.9%. The distinction matters because a number that looks calm for one stock is turbulent for another, and the absolute figure on its own tells you neither.

MPC is at its running peak. Across 12 full years on file its median worst-drawdown-in-a-year was -28.3%, with the deepest at -73.0% in 2020 — so highs have historically been given back before they were extended.

Price sits +69.7% from its 200-day moving average. Against every other day in its history, that gap ranks at the 100th percentile a wider gap than this stock usually carries. Over the past year MPC closed higher on 59% of sessions, and it is currently 6 sessions into a rising streak.

On September specifically: over 13 years of records, MPC finished the month higher 8 of 13 times, with a median return of +2.8% and an average of +1.6%. Its strongest month historically has been July at +5.7% on average, its weakest December at -2.5%. Seasonality is a weak signal on its own — a decade is a small sample and regimes change — but it is a real distribution rather than a rule of thumb.

Overnight risk is measurable too: MPC has opened more than 2% away from the prior close in 171 of 3,268 sessions (5.2% of the time), with the largest gaps running +7.8% and -11.7%. For anyone holding through an event, that rate is a better guide to overnight exposure than the intraday range.

Across the last 3 dated reports on file, MPC moved an average of 4.3% in the session after earnings, closing higher 1 of those 3 times, with a median move of -2.8% and a largest of -5.6%.

All figures computed from 3,269 daily closes between 2013-09-19 and 2026-09-18, split-adjusted, recomputed daily. Percentiles are against MPC's own 13-year history, not a peer group or index.

Sector Rotation

Is money rotating into or out of MPC's sector?

Marathon Petroleum Corporation sits in the Energy sector, currently ranked 2nd of 11 GICS sectors by relative-strength rotation score (weakening).

Sector rank
#2 of 11
Sector state
Weakening
Sector rotation score
80

Options Market

What is the options market pricing for MPC?

CallsPuts

For Marathon Petroleum Corporation's nearest expiry (2026-10-16, 27 days out), open interest is put-heavy, a defensive/bearish tilt (put/call ratio of 1.68), with at-the-money implied volatility around 50.9%. The options market is pricing roughly a ±13.8% move by that expiry — a range of about $345.76–$456.16.

Put/call ratio (2026-10-16)
1.68
ATM implied volatility
50.9%
Total open interest
17,988
Expected move by 2026-10-16
±13.8% ($345.76–$456.16)

Analyst Rating Changes

Are analysts turning bullish or bearish on MPC?

Raymond James most recently reiterated its rating on Marathon Petroleum Corporation to Outperform on Sep 14, 2026 with a price target of $445 (from $350). Over the last 90 days, coverage has run 0 upgrades against 0 downgrades, a net mixed lean.

Latest action
Raymond JamesOutperform
90-day upgrades
0
90-day downgrades
0
Net rating momentum
0
DateFirmActionRatingPrice target
Sep 14, 2026Raymond JamesMaintainedOutperform$350 → $445
Sep 14, 2026Morgan StanleyMaintainedOverweight$265 → $453
Sep 8, 2026UBSMaintainedBuy$321 → $450
Sep 3, 2026Piper SandlerMaintainedOverweight$344 → $462
Sep 1, 2026Wells FargoMaintainedOverweight$359 → $400
Aug 11, 2026MizuhoMaintainedNeutral$284 → $304
Aug 6, 2026Piper SandlerMaintainedOverweight$343 → $344
Aug 6, 2026BarclaysMaintainedOverweight$289 → $321
Aug 5, 2026TD CowenMaintainedBuy$357 → $375
Aug 5, 2026CitigroupMaintainedNeutral$303 → $318
Aug 5, 2026Wells FargoMaintainedOverweight$344 → $359
Aug 5, 2026Evercore ISI GroupMaintainedIn-Line$300 → $330

MPC Competitive Positioning

Marathon Petroleum Corporation (MPC) is tracked alongside these names in Oil & Gas Refining & Marketing on DailyIQ — ranked by market cap, with today's move alongside.