Based on the aggregated intelligence of 120,000-plus investors participating in Motley Fool CAPS, the Fool's free investing community, Marathon Oil (NYSE:MRO) has earned a respected four-star ranking. While five-star stocks have been the best performers, our data has shown that four-star stocks still outshine the market by a significant margin and shouldn't be taken lightly; conversely, low-rated stocks have woefully lagged the market average.

With that in mind, let's take a closer look at Marathon's business, and see what CAPS investors are saying about the stock right now.

Marathon facts

Headquarters (founded)

Houston, Texas (1887)

Market Cap

$16.46 billion

Industry

Integrated Oil and Gas

TTM Revenue

$75.94 billion

Management

CEO Clarence Cazalot, Jr. (since 2002)
CFO Janet Clark (since 2004)

Return on Equity (average last three years)

30.3%

Dividend Yield

3.7%

Competitors

Sunoco (NYSE:SUN),
BP (NYSE:BP)

CAPS members bullish on MRO also bullish on

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO),
ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

CAPS members bearish on MRO also bearish on

Chevron (NYSE:CVX),
Tesoro (NYSE:TSO)

Sources: Capital IQ, a division of Standard & Poor's, and Motley Fool CAPS. TTM = trailing 12 months.

Over on CAPS, fully 1185 of the 1239 members who have rated Marathon -- almost 96% -- believe the stock will outperform the S&P 500 going forward. These Fools include cmanasco and Harry0925.

Last month, cmanasco tapped Marathon as a particularly special situation: "With the potential for Marathon to split its business into two equally valuable groups there is serious potential here for a double in the next couple of months, how often do you see that in recessionary times?!"

In a pitch just a day before, Harry0925 elaborated on the proposed value-unlocking break-up:

Company is breaking up, will unlock significant value. Has 1.2B BOE in proved reserves, and refining business had revenue of $56B last year. Using conservative multiples yields a much higher price. They are selling assets this quarter for $1.1B, will sell more assets for $2-4B next quarter, and earned $2B last quarter. Note the market cap is only $20B. Yield is currently about 3.5% and balance sheet is strong.

What do you think about Marathon, or any other stock for that matter? Make your voice heard on Motley Fool CAPS today. More than 120,000 investors are waiting to hear what you have to say. CAPS is 100% free, so simply click here to get started.
This article represents the opinion of the writer, who may disagree with the “official” recommendation position of a Motley Fool premium advisory service. We’re motley! Questioning an investing thesis -- even one of our own -- helps us all think critically about investing and make decisions that help us become smarter, happier, and richer.