Marathon Crude Oil (MPC.US) Q3 profit nearly fivefold year-on-year, selling two refineries to Ikan for US$4.2 billion

The Zhitong Finance App learned that before the US stock market on November 3, Marathon Crude Oil (MPC.US), the largest independent refiner in the US, announced results for the third quarter of 2026. According to financial reports, the company's total revenue and other revenue was US$56.487 billion, including sales and operating income of US$56.032 billion, which significantly exceeded market expectations of US$43.81 billion; diluted earnings per share of US$26.59, adjusted earnings per share of US$26.93, or US$4.51 for the same period last year, also exceeded market expectations of US$25.59 to US$26.00.

The performance explosion was mainly driven by the refining business. Since the Iran war, about 10% of the world's refining capacity has been decommissioned. Combined with Russian export restrictions, gasoline, diesel, and aviation fuel prices are close to historic highs. The International Energy Agency (IEA) anticipates that the shortage of diesel supply may continue until 2027.

The company's refining profit for the quarter was $45.70 per barrel, compared to $17.60 in the same period last year; adjusted EBITDA reached $11.729 billion, compared to $3.26 billion in the same period last year.

The company's crude oil capacity utilization rate in the third quarter reached 100%, with a total throughput of 3.2 million b/d. The adjusted refining and marketing segment EBITDA reached $9.895 billion, 5.6 times the same period last year. The midstream segment had an adjusted EBITDA of US$1,882 million, an increase of 10% year over year; the renewable diesel division turned a loss into profit, with an EBITDA of US$254 million.

In terms of capital allocation, the company returned 3.3 billion US dollars to shareholders during the quarter and announced a 10% increase in quarterly dividends to $1.10 per share; the board of directors added 5 billion US dollars in repurchase authorizations, and the total amount of repurchases available as of September 30 reached 8.1 billion US dollars.

The company announced on the same day that it would sell the St. Paul Park and Mandan refineries and related marketing operations for approximately US$4.2 billion (plus net working capital) to CVR Energy (CVI.US), a billionaire investor. Of this, MPC received US$3.45 billion and plans to reinvest mainly in the Gulf Coast; its MPLX share is US$750 million, and the transaction is expected to be completed by the end of 2026. Against the backdrop of global fuel processing capacity shrinking and high refining profits due to the conflict between the Persian Gulf and Russia, CVR Energy's move is bucking the trend to expand production capacity.

Chairman and CEO Marian Manning said value chain capabilities were the company's defining strength, and strong planning, commercial and operational execution generated significant cash flow.