3 Reasons To Like Marathon Petroleum: Dividends, Buybacks, Demand

Marathon Petroleum Corp MPC traded lower following the company's third-quarter financial results earlier this week.

Cerity Partners' Jim Lebenthal took advantage of the sell-off and added to his Marathon Petroleum stock position.

"The market gives you opportunities because it sometimes gets it wrong," Lebenthal said Friday on CNBC's "Fast Money Halftime Report."

The company's earnings report was "fabulous," according to Lebenthal.

The company reported quarterly adjusted earnings of 73 cents per share, which beat the estimate of 71 cents per share.

The report clearly shows that demand for refined fossil fuel products is high and growing, Lebenthal said. Marathon Petroleum offers a high dividend and is "buying back shares like crazy," he added.

See Also: Where Marathon Oil Stands With Analysts

Marathon Petroleum currently has a dividend yield of 3.7%, according to data from Benzinga Pro.

"This is an opportunity" following the sell-off from earlier this week, Lebenthal said: "This is where you should go."

MPC Price Action: Marathon Petroleum has traded as high as $68.78 and as low as $31.13 over a 52-week period.

The stock was up 3.63% at $65.88 at time of publication.

Photo: courtesy of Marathon Petroleum.