Gradient Investments LLC Sells 5,653 Shares of Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. $MLM

Gradient Investments LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM) by 11.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 43,906 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 5,653 shares during the period. Gradient Investments LLC’s holdings in Martin Marietta Materials were worth $21,067,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. CoreCap Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 370.0% in the second quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 47 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Martin Marietta Materials by 67.9% in the first quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 47 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the period. Reflection Asset Management purchased a new position in Martin Marietta Materials in the fourth quarter valued at $35,000. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in Martin Marietta Materials during the 2nd quarter worth $39,000. Finally, EFG International AG acquired a new position in Martin Marietta Materials during the 2nd quarter worth $39,000. 95.04% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Martin Marietta Materials from $585.00 to $579.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. Citigroup cut their target price on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $690.00 to $610.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 2nd. Stephens reduced their target price on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $700.00 to $680.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 31st. Truist Financial decreased their price target 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. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $610.00 to $620.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, August 28th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $651.76.

Martin Marietta Materials Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of MLM traded down $0.75 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $478.26. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 361,471 shares, compared to its average volume of 591,708. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 1.41 and a quick ratio of 0.73. Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. has a 12-month low of $470.19 and a 12-month high of $710.97. The stock has a market cap of $28.73 billion, a PE ratio of 11.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.08. The company’s 50 day moving average is $515.87 and its 200 day moving average is $561.70.

Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The construction company reported $5.00 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.76 by $0.24. The firm had revenue of $1.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.87 billion. Martin Marietta Materials had a return on equity of 9.49% and a net margin of 36.73%.The firm’s revenue was up 21.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $5.43 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. will post 17.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Martin Marietta Materials Increases Dividend

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

About Martin Marietta Materials

Martin Marietta Materials, Inc is a producer and supplier of construction materials used in infrastructure, commercial, residential, and industrial projects. The company’s principal products include crushed stone, sand, gravel, cement, ready-mixed concrete, asphalt, and related paving materials.

The company serves customers primarily across the United States, with operations concentrated in major markets experiencing demand for transportation infrastructure, building construction, and other development projects.