Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM) Upgraded at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM) from a strong sell rating to a hold rating in a report published on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research firms also recently weighed in on MLM. Loop Capital downgraded Martin Marietta Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $690.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Citigroup upped their target price on Martin Marietta Materials from $780.00 to $804.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Weiss Ratings downgraded Martin Marietta Materials from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $785.00 target price on shares of Martin Marietta Materials in a report on Thursday, February 26th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Martin Marietta Materials from $702.00 to $664.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 6th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Martin Marietta Materials currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $692.06.

Martin Marietta Materials Trading Down 2.1%

MLM opened at $617.24 on Monday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $628.77 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $629.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.83, a PEG ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 3.57 and a quick ratio of 2.36. Martin Marietta Materials has a one year low of $478.86 and a one year high of $710.97.

Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM) last released 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). Martin Marietta Materials had a net margin of 17.38% and a return on equity of 10.86%. The business had revenue of $1.53 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.66 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $4.79 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.3% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Martin Marietta Materials will post 19.53 EPS for the current year.

Martin Marietta Materials Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors 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 dividend yield of 0.5%. Martin Marietta Materials’s dividend payout ratio is presently 17.66%.

Institutional Trading of Martin Marietta Materials

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp grew its stake in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 321.8% in the 3rd quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp now owns 3,817 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $2,406,000 after buying an additional 2,912 shares during the last quarter. National Pension Service boosted its stake in Martin Marietta Materials by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. National Pension Service now owns 84,820 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $53,460,000 after purchasing an additional 843 shares during the last quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Martin Marietta Materials by 78.5% during the 3rd quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,008 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $5,048,000 after purchasing an additional 3,522 shares during the last quarter. Caprock Group LLC purchased a new stake in Martin Marietta Materials during the 3rd quarter valued at $1,605,000. Finally, Fenimore Asset Management Inc boosted its stake in Martin Marietta Materials by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Fenimore Asset Management Inc now owns 89,657 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $56,509,000 after purchasing an additional 807 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.04% of the company’s stock.

Martin Marietta Materials Company Profile

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.