Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM) Stock Rating Cut to “Strong Sell” at Zacks Research

Zacks Research downgraded shares of Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM) from a hold rating to a strong sell rating in a report issued on Tuesday,Zacks reports.

MLM has been the subject of several other reports. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $730.00 to $625.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 5th. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered Martin Marietta Materials to an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 2nd. Stephens reduced their target price on Martin Marietta Materials from $700.00 to $680.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 31st. UBS Group lowered their price target on Martin Marietta Materials from $715.00 to $662.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 8th. Finally, DA Davidson raised Martin Marietta Materials from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $610.00 price target for the company in a research report on Friday, October 16th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Martin Marietta Materials currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $642.65.

Martin Marietta Materials Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of MLM stock opened at $509.62 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $30.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.52, a PEG ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 1.08. Martin Marietta Materials has a 1-year low of $464.92 and a 1-year high of $710.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 1.41 and a quick ratio of 0.73. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $504.66 and its 200-day simple moving average is $555.18.

Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The construction company reported $5.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.76 by $0.24. Martin Marietta Materials had a net margin of 36.73% and a return on equity of 9.49%. The firm had revenue of $1.95 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.87 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $5.43 earnings per share. Martin Marietta Materials’s revenue was up 21.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Martin Marietta Materials will post 16.29 EPS for the current year.

Martin Marietta Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 1st were issued a $0.84 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 1st. This represents a $3.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. This is an increase from Martin Marietta Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. Martin Marietta Materials’s payout ratio is currently 8.26%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Martin Marietta Materials

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of MLM. Activest Wealth Management grew its position in Martin Marietta Materials by 1,633.3% in the third quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 52 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 370.0% during the second quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 47 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the period. Meeder Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 67.9% during the first quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 47 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. GK Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Martin Marietta Materials during the third quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Osterweis Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Martin Marietta Materials in the second quarter valued at $39,000. 95.04% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Martin Marietta Materials Company Profile

Martin Marietta Materials, Inc is a supplier of construction materials serving the infrastructure, commercial, residential and industrial markets. The company’s primary business is aggregates, including crushed stone, sand and gravel used in roads, bridges, buildings and other construction projects.

Martin Marietta also produces cement, ready-mixed concrete and asphalt products, and provides paving and related construction services in selected markets. Through its Magnesia Specialties business, the company manufactures magnesium-based and dolomitic lime products used in industrial, environmental and agricultural applications.

Headquartered in Raleigh, North Carolina, Martin Marietta Materials became an independent publicly traded company in 1993 following a spin-off from Martin Marietta Corporation.