Analysts expect Marathon Petroleum Corp. (MPC) will report a substantial decline in fourth-quarter earnings when it releases results next Tuesday, reflecting narrowing profit margins in its refining business driven by falliꦫng gasoline prices.

Marathon likely recorded a profit of $835.9 million, or $2.22 per share, according to 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:consensus estimates compiled by Visible Alpha. That would mark a 73% plunge from the same period a year ago, when the company earned $3.1 billion, or $7.09 a share.

Source: Visible Alpha

Pretax profit in the company's midstream pipeline unit likely rose 9% to $1.2 billion, according to Visible Alpha. But pretax earnings in its refining and marketing division, typically accounting for the bulk of Marathon's income, are projected to drop 86% to $566 million.

U.S. retail gasoline prices fell to an average of $3.48 per gallon in the fourth quarter, down from $3.87 in the third quarter and $3.68 in the fourth quarter of 2022. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Gasoline prices slid throughout the latest quarter, dropping ♒to $3.28 from $3.🎶93 at the start of the period.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration predicts U.S. gasoline prices will average about $3.40 per gallon in 2024, down about 10 cents from 2023, as gasoline 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:inventories increase.

Shares of Marathon Petroleum have gained about 20% in the past 12 months and have traded at record highs this month.