Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM) Stock Price Down 3.6%

Shares of Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM) traded down 3.6% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $589.50 and last traded at $590.70. 98,122 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 76% from the average session volume of 407,917 shares. The stock had previously closed at $612.68.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently issued reports on MLM. HSBC upgraded Martin Marietta Materials from a “reduce” rating to a “hold” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $376.00 to $543.00 in a report on Thursday, February 22nd. Citigroup raised their price target on Martin Marietta Materials from $635.00 to $708.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Raymond James increased their price objective on Martin Marietta Materials from $505.00 to $555.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 25th. Stephens boosted their target price on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $575.00 to $605.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 16th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $621.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $610.27.

Martin Marietta Materials Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $35.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.95. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $601.40 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $533.46. The company has a quick ratio of 2.41, a current ratio of 3.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44.

Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 30th. The construction company reported $1.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.88 by $0.05. Martin Marietta Materials had a return on equity of 14.74% and a net margin of 31.35%. The firm had revenue of $1.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.31 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.16 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. will post 21.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Martin Marietta Materials Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.74 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 3rd. This represents a $2.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.51%. Martin Marietta Materials’s payout ratio is 8.77%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Roselyn R. Bar sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $603.29, for a total transaction of $6,032,900.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 59,970 shares in the company, valued at approximately $36,179,301.30. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Roselyn R. Bar sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $603.29, for a total transaction of $6,032,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 59,970 shares in the company, valued at approximately $36,179,301.30. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO C Howard Nye sold 15,000 shares of Martin Marietta Materials stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $604.26, for a total value of $9,063,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 134,640 shares in the company, valued at approximately $81,357,566.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Martin Marietta Materials

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MLM. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new position in shares of Martin Marietta Materials in the first quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc. acquired a new position in Martin Marietta Materials in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Martin Marietta Materials during the first quarter valued at $31,000. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Martin Marietta Materials during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Finally, Exchange Traded Concepts LLC bought a new stake in shares of Martin Marietta Materials in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Institutional investors own 95.04% of the company’s stock.

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.