Ancora Advisors LLC Has $5.01 Million Stock Holdings in Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. $MLM

Key Points

• Ancora Advisors LLC has reduced its stake in Martin Marietta Materials by 6.7%, holding 10,484 shares valued at $5.01 million as of the end of the first quarter.
• Martin Marietta recently posted earnings per share of $5.43, missing analyst expectations, while revenues were $1.81 billion, below the forecast of $1.88 billion.
• The company has declared an increase in its quarterly dividend from $0.79 to $0.83 per share, effective September 30, reflecting a positive change for shareholders.

Ancora Advisors LLC decreased its holdings in Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM - Free Report) by 6.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 10,484 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 757 shares during the quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC's holdings in Martin Marietta Materials were worth $5,013,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of MLM. Wayfinding Financial LLC bought a new position in Martin Marietta Materials during the first quarter valued at about $29,000. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT purchased a new stake in Martin Marietta Materials in the 1st quarter worth about $30,000. Chilton Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Martin Marietta Materials in the 1st quarter worth about $30,000. IMA Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new stake in Martin Marietta Materials in the 1st quarter worth about $40,000. Finally, Valley National Advisers Inc. lifted its stake in Martin Marietta Materials by 193.9% in the 1st quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 97 shares of the construction company's stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.04% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Martin Marietta Materials from $609.00 to $637.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Martin Marietta Materials from $576.00 to $605.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 28th. Stephens restated an "overweight" rating and set a $700.00 target price on shares of Martin Marietta Materials in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Martin Marietta Materials from $577.00 to $643.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Finally, UBS Group upgraded Martin Marietta Materials from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $548.00 to $634.00 in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $622.63.

Insider Buying and Selling at Martin Marietta Materials

In related news, Director Laree E. Perez sold 1,038 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $613.32, for a total transaction of $636,626.16. Following the sale, the director owned 15,417 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,455,554.44. This trade represents a 6.31% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.68% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Martin Marietta Materials Stock Up 0.7%

MLM traded up $4.06 on Monday, hitting $626.70. 313,719 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 474,861. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a current ratio of 2.35. The stock's fifty day moving average is $587.60 and its 200-day moving average is $539.05. The company has a market cap of $37.80 billion, a PE ratio of 34.76, a PEG ratio of 5.64 and a beta of 0.94. Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. has a 12 month low of $441.95 and a 12 month high of $633.23.

Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The construction company reported $5.43 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $5.44 by ($0.01). Martin Marietta Materials had a return on equity of 11.88% and a net margin of 16.47%.The firm had revenue of $1.81 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.88 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $4.76 EPS. Martin Marietta Materials's revenue for the quarter was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. Martin Marietta Materials has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. will post 19.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Martin Marietta Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.83 per share. This is a positive change from Martin Marietta Materials's previous quarterly dividend of $0.79. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 2nd. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Martin Marietta Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.41%.

About Martin Marietta Materials

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.