Marathon Petroleum (MPC) will raise its quarterly dividend by 15.2 percent to $0.53 per share in the first quarter of 2019. Last year the dividend was hiked by 15.0 percent. The year 2019 will mark the 8th consecutive year of dividend increases.

The dividend is payable March 11, 2019, to shareholders of record as of the close of business February 20, 2019. A new annualized dividend rate of $2.12 per share for MPC yields 2.9% at a stock price of $63.47.

"The $0.53 dividend approved by our board represents a 15 percent increase to our previous quarterly dividend," said Gary R. Heminger, chairman and chief executive officer. "We have balanced meaningful return of capital with continued long-term investment in the business," continued Heminger. "This increase in our quarterly dividend underscores our confidence in the expected cash-generating power of our new nationwide enterprise, and our commitment to continued return of capital as we deliver on the projected synergies of the combined business."

Marathon Petroleum Corporation is an integrated, downstream energy company headquartered in Findlay, Ohio. The company's business includes petroleum product refining, marketing, retail and transportation. Also MPC is one of the largest natural gas processors in the United States. MPC's marketing system includes branded locations across the United States, including Marathon brand retail outlets. Speedway LLC, an MPC subsidiary, owns and operates retail convenience stores across the United States. MPC also owns the general partner and majority limited partner interests in two midstream companies, MPLX LP and Andeavor Logistics LP, which own and operate gathering, processing, and fractionation assets, as well as crude oil and light product transportation and logistics infrastructure. Marathon Petroleum Corporation has roots tracing back to the formation of the Ohio Oil Company in 1887.