Wells Fargo & Company Cuts Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM) Price Target to $585.00

Key Points

• Wells Fargo lowered Martin Marietta Materials’ price target from $609 to $585 while maintaining an “overweight” rating, implying approximately 19.2% upside from the stock’s current price.
• Analyst sentiment remains positive overall, with 12 Buy ratings, seven Holds and one Sell; the consensus rating is “Moderate Buy” with a significantly higher average price target of $666.12.
• Martin Marietta reported quarterly EPS of $5.00, exceeding the $4.76 consensus estimate, while revenue rose 21% year over year to $1.95 billion. Institutional investors own approximately 95% of the company’s shares.

Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM - Get Free Report) had its price target reduced by investment analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $609.00 to $585.00 in a report issued on Monday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an "overweight" rating on the construction company's stock. Wells Fargo & Company's price objective suggests a potential upside of 19.22% from the stock's current price.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Berenberg Bank set a $556.00 price objective on shares of Martin Marietta Materials and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Wolfe Research set a $648.00 price target on Martin Marietta Materials in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Martin Marietta Materials from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $680.00 target price on the stock in a report on Wednesday, September 2nd. Sanford C. Bernstein downgraded shares of Martin Marietta Materials to an "underweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 2nd. Finally, Raymond James Financial set a $660.00 price target on shares of Martin Marietta Materials in a report on Friday, July 31st. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $666.12.

Martin Marietta Materials Price Performance

Shares of MLM opened at $490.70 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $29.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.06, a PEG ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 1.10. Martin Marietta Materials has a 1-year low of $488.74 and a 1-year high of $710.97. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $536.26 and its 200 day simple moving average is $572.49. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44.

Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The construction company reported $5.00 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 net margin of 36.73% and a return on equity of 9.49%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 21.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $5.43 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Martin Marietta Materials will post 18.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Martin Marietta Materials

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of MLM. Meeder Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 67.9% in 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 during the last quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC raised its position in Martin Marietta Materials by 370.0% during the 2nd quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 47 shares of the construction company's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Reflection Asset Management acquired a new position in Martin Marietta Materials during the 4th quarter worth about $35,000. Harbour Investments Inc. grew its position in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 31.4% in the 4th quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 67 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 16 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EFG International AG bought a new stake in shares of Martin Marietta Materials in the 2nd quarter valued at about $39,000. Institutional investors own 95.04% of the company's stock.

Martin Marietta Materials Company Profile

Martin Marietta Materials, Inc is a U.S.-based supplier of construction aggregates and other building materials. The company produces crushed stone, sand and gravel used in infrastructure, commercial, residential and industrial construction projects.

Its products and services also include cement, ready-mixed concrete, asphalt and paving materials. Martin Marietta serves customers involved in roads, bridges, airports, buildings and other essential infrastructure, with operations concentrated across several regions of the United States.

The company was established in 1993 as an independent, publicly traded materials business formed from the construction materials operations of Martin Marietta Corporation.

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