Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Buys 65,454 Shares of Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM)

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its stake in shares of Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM) by 682.5% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 75,045 shares of the construction company’s stock after acquiring an additional 65,454 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.’s holdings in Martin Marietta Materials were worth $40,393,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its position in Martin Marietta Materials by 411.1% during the second quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 46 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the period. Riverview Trust Co bought a new stake in shares of Martin Marietta Materials during the 1st quarter worth approximately $26,000. Asset Dedication LLC boosted its position in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 1,300.0% during the 3rd quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 56 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Martin Marietta Materials in the first quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC raised its position in 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 purchasing an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. 95.04% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on MLM shares. StockNews.com downgraded Martin Marietta Materials from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Martin Marietta Materials from $560.00 to $515.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $650.00 to $630.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $650.00 to $635.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Stephens cut their price objective on Martin Marietta Materials from $650.00 to $610.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $619.36.

Martin Marietta Materials Trading Up 1.4 %

MLM opened at $570.65 on Friday. Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. has a twelve month low of $389.90 and a twelve month high of $626.67. The company has a fifty day moving average of $536.09 and a 200-day moving average of $557.20. The stock has a market cap of $35.17 billion, a PE ratio of 16.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.68 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a quick ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 1.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45.

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

Martin Marietta Materials Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd were paid a $0.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 3rd. This is a positive change from Martin Marietta Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.74. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.55%. Martin Marietta Materials’s payout ratio is 9.36%.

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.