Upcoming spinoffs & other opportunities

Article Excerpt

MARATHON PETROLEUM $57 (New York symbol MPC; Resources sector; Shares outstanding: 506.3 million; Market cap: $28.9 billion; Takeover Target Rating: Lowest; Dividend yield: 2.8%; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www. marathonpetroleum.com) is a U.S. petroleum refining, marketing and transportation company based in Findlay, Ohio. In November 2016, activist investor Elliott Management acquired a 4% stake in Marathon Petroleum and made several demands. They included a spinoff of Speedway, which runs gas stations and convenience stores across the U.S. In January 2017, Marathon agreed to the spinoff. However, the company has now cancelled its plans to set up its Speedway convenience store operations as a separate company. The decision was backed by Elliott Management. In the meantime, though, the company will increase shareholder value through its focus on share buybacks. It plans to repurchase $450 million in shares by the end of September and another $550 million by the end of this fiscal year. It will fund the repurchases by selling some of its assets to…