Marathon Petroleum Corp (MPC): Can This Company Keep Its Profits Up?

More recently, though, conditions for Marathon have gotten somewhat less favorable. The premium that energy companies have been willing to pay for Brent crude over U.S. oil has fallen recently, reducing the cost advantage that Marathon Petroleum Corp (NYSE:MPC) and its peers have over foreign refiners. On the regulatory front, Marathon has been buying up ethanol credits in an effort to forestall requirements to blend more ethanol into its gasoline, and proposed new EPA pollution-control regulations could cost Marathon and its peers huge amounts of money to make necessary improvements to facilities.

In Marathon’s quarterly report, watch for how the refiner’s relationship with spun-off midstream pipeline operator MPLX LP (NYSE:MPLX) is faring. With Marathon holding a majority stake in MPLX, its pipeline assets will play an increasingly important role in bringing midcontinent energy products to its refineries.

The article Can Marathon Petroleum Keep Its Profits Up? originally appeared on Fool.com and is written by Dan Caplinger.

Fool contributor Dan Caplinger has no position in any stocks mentioned. You can follow him on Twitter: @DanCaplinger. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned.

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