Scientech Research LLC Increases Holdings in Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM)

Scientech Research LLC boosted its position in Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM) by 42.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,123 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 333 shares during the quarter. Scientech Research LLC’s holdings in Martin Marietta Materials were worth $608,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Martin Marietta Materials in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Riverview Trust Co bought a new stake in Martin Marietta Materials in the first quarter worth $26,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Martin Marietta Materials during the first quarter valued at about $31,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its stake in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 186.4% during the second quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 63 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pathway Financial Advisers LLC purchased a new position in shares of Martin Marietta Materials in the first quarter worth about $41,000. 95.04% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Martin Marietta Materials Price Performance

MLM stock opened at $539.11 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 1.86 and a quick ratio of 0.94. Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. has a 1 year low of $389.90 and a 1 year high of $626.67. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $538.34 and a 200 day moving average of $565.00. The company has a market cap of $33.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.97, a PEG ratio of 3.78 and a beta of 0.91.

Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The construction company reported $4.76 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.36 by ($0.60). Martin Marietta Materials had a net margin of 30.80% and a return on equity of 13.85%. The firm had revenue of $1.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.83 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $5.60 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. will post 19.33 EPS for the current year.

Martin Marietta Materials Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.79 per share. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.59%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 3rd. This is a boost from Martin Marietta Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.74. Martin Marietta Materials’s payout ratio is 9.36%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MLM has been the subject of several analyst reports. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Martin Marietta Materials from $610.00 to $657.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, August 26th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on Martin Marietta Materials from $650.00 to $630.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 3rd. BNP Paribas raised shares of Martin Marietta Materials to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $660.00 to $665.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, Stephens decreased their price objective on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $650.00 to $610.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Martin Marietta Materials currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $629.82.

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.