Aberdeen Group plc Cuts Holdings in Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. $MLM

Aberdeen Group plc cut its position in shares of Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM) by 6.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 24,007 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 1,772 shares during the quarter. Aberdeen Group plc’s holdings in Martin Marietta Materials were worth $14,948,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its holdings in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 31.9% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 2,340,677 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,284,938,000 after buying an additional 565,856 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in Martin Marietta Materials by 9.6% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,204,425 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,389,428,000 after buying an additional 192,637 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC grew its position in Martin Marietta Materials by 1,570.3% during the third quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 108,167 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $68,175,000 after buying an additional 115,524 shares during the period. Freestone Grove Partners LP boosted its stake in Martin Marietta Materials by 748.5% in the third quarter. Freestone Grove Partners LP now owns 124,963 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $78,762,000 after acquiring an additional 110,236 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,442,945 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $4,691,139,000 after acquiring an additional 93,595 shares during the period. 95.04% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Martin Marietta Materials Stock Performance

Shares of MLM stock opened at $598.09 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $36.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.81, a PEG ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a current ratio of 3.57, a quick ratio of 2.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $633.44 and its 200 day moving average is $628.83. Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. has a 12 month low of $441.95 and a 12 month high of $710.97.

Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The construction company reported $4.62 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.81 by ($0.19). The business had revenue of $1.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.66 billion. Martin Marietta Materials had a net margin of 17.38% and a return on equity of 10.86%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 9.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $4.79 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. will post 19.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Martin Marietta Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 2nd were paid a $0.83 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 2nd. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. Martin Marietta Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 17.66%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on MLM shares. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $702.00 to $664.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $630.00 target price on shares of Martin Marietta Materials in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $675.00 to $640.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $785.00 target price on shares of Martin Marietta Materials in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. Finally, Stephens reduced their target price on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $740.00 to $735.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Martin Marietta Materials currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $692.31.

About Martin Marietta Materials

Martin Marietta Materials, Inc (NYSE: MLM) is a leading producer of aggregates and heavy building materials serving the construction and infrastructure markets. The company operates quarries, sand and gravel pits, and other extraction sites to supply crushed stone, sand and gravel, and a range of value‑added products for use in roads, bridges, commercial and residential construction, and other civil engineering projects.

In addition to its core aggregates business, Martin Marietta manufactures and sells asphalt, ready‑mixed concrete and related materials and services.