Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM) Sets New 12-Month High – Here’s Why

Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM) shares hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $627.93 and last traded at $619.28, with a volume of 99243 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $582.52.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MLM has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $650.00 to $635.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Truist Financial decreased their price target on Martin Marietta Materials from $700.00 to $670.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $595.00 to $645.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. Stephens lowered their target price on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $650.00 to $610.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 9th. Finally, Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $658.00 to $646.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Martin Marietta Materials presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $626.92.

Martin Marietta Materials Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 2.34, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The stock has a market capitalization of $37.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.15, a P/E/G ratio of 3.82 and a beta of 0.90. The company’s 50-day moving average is $543.42 and its two-hundred day moving average is $555.73.

Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The construction company reported $5.91 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $6.41 by ($0.50). Martin Marietta Materials had a net margin of 30.47% and a return on equity of 12.53%. The business had revenue of $1.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.94 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $6.94 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. will post 18.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Martin Marietta Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd were given a $0.79 dividend. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.51%. This is an increase from Martin Marietta Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.74. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 3rd. Martin Marietta Materials’s dividend payout ratio is 9.85%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Martin Marietta Materials

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 2.8% in the 2nd quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC now owns 664 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $360,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares during the period. Inspire Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 0.9% in the third quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 2,126 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,144,000 after buying an additional 19 shares during the period. Mather Group LLC. increased its position in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 13.6% in the second quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 167 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $90,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. TFG Advisers LLC raised its holdings in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 3.7% during the second quarter. TFG Advisers LLC now owns 555 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $300,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the period. Finally, Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Co lifted its position in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 3.0% in the 2nd quarter. Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Co now owns 680 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $368,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. 95.04% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Martin Marietta Materials Company Profile

Martin Marietta Materials, Inc, a natural resource-based building materials company, supplies aggregates and heavy-side building materials to the construction industry in the United States and internationally. It offers crushed stone, sand, and gravel products; ready mixed concrete and asphalt; paving products and services; and Portland and specialty cement for use in the infrastructure projects, and nonresidential and residential construction markets, as well as in the railroad, agricultural, utility, and environmental industries.