Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Citigroup Analyst Says

Key Points

• Citigroup raised its price target on Martin Marietta Materials to $641 from $610 and reiterated a Buy rating, implying 23.9% potential upside from the prior close.
• Analyst sentiment is broadly positive: MarketBeat reports a Moderate Buy consensus and an average price target of $642.60, though ratings include seven Holds and two Sells.
• The stock fell 2.0% on Friday to $517.36. Its latest quarter’s revenue grew 28.3% year over year to $2.37 billion, but EPS of $5.47 missed the $5.99 consensus estimate.

Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM - Get Free Report) had its target price raised by Citigroup from $610.00 to $641.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a "buy" rating on the construction company's stock. Citigroup's target price indicates a potential upside of 23.90% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other research firms also recently weighed in on MLM. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Martin Marietta Materials from $664.00 to $639.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein downgraded Martin Marietta Materials to an "underweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Martin Marietta Materials from $680.00 to $650.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 13th. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price target on Martin Marietta Materials from $530.00 to $520.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price objective 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. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $642.60.

Martin Marietta Materials Trading Down 2.0%

MLM traded down $10.47 during trading on Friday, reaching $517.36. 1,002,984 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 627,721. Martin Marietta Materials has a one year low of $464.92 and a one year high of $710.97. The company has a current ratio of 1.63, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $31.08 billion, a PE ratio of 13.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.02. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $503.24 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $573.99.

Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 4th. The construction company reported $5.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.99 by ($0.52). The business had revenue of $2.37 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.24 billion. Martin Marietta Materials had a net margin of 31.88% and a return on equity of 7.96%. Martin Marietta Materials's revenue was up 28.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $6.85 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Martin Marietta Materials will post 16.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. AMG National Trust Bank lifted its stake in Martin Marietta Materials by 3.6% in the first quarter. AMG National Trust Bank now owns 495 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $291,000 after buying an additional 17 shares during the period. AlTi Global Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 1.2% during the 1st quarter. AlTi Global Inc. now owns 1,496 shares of the construction company's stock worth $881,000 after buying an additional 18 shares in the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 67.9% during the 1st quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 47 shares of the construction company's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. Castle Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 2.2% during the 1st quarter. Castle Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,082 shares of the construction company's stock worth $637,000 after buying an additional 23 shares during the period. Finally, Western Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 5.1% during the 1st quarter. Western Wealth Management LLC now owns 559 shares of the construction company's stock worth $329,000 after buying an additional 27 shares during the period. 95.04% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.

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