Great Lakes Advisors LLC Acquires Shares of 13,964 Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. $MLM

Key Points

• Great Lakes Advisors initiated a position in Martin Marietta Materials by purchasing 13,964 shares valued at approximately $8.05 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 95.04% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment remains moderately positive, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $668.53, although several firms recently lowered their targets.
• Martin Marietta exceeded quarterly earnings and revenue expectations, while revenue rose 21% year over year. The company also increased its quarterly dividend to $0.84 per share, producing an annualized yield of 0.6%.

Great Lakes Advisors LLC bought a new position in Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 13,964 shares of the construction company's stock, valued at approximately $8,053,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Lido Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Lido Advisors LLC now owns 1,920 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $1,209,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC boosted its stake in Martin Marietta Materials by 3.9% during the fourth quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 424 shares of the construction company's stock worth $264,000 after buying an additional 16 shares during the last quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. grew its holdings in 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 in the last quarter. AMG National Trust Bank grew its holdings in Martin Marietta Materials by 3.6% in the 1st 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Quadrant Capital Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 2,186 shares of the construction company's stock worth $1,361,000 after acquiring an additional 17 shares during the last quarter. 95.04% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MLM has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wall Street Zen lowered Martin Marietta Materials from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $700.00 to $680.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Oppenheimer assumed coverage on shares of Martin Marietta Materials in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. They issued a "market perform" rating for the company. Stephens cut their price target on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $700.00 to $680.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Wolfe Research set a $648.00 price objective on Martin Marietta Materials in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $668.53.

Martin Marietta Materials Price Performance

Shares of MLM opened at $535.67 on Thursday. Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. has a 1-year low of $522.19 and a 1-year high of $710.97. The stock has a market cap of $32.18 billion, a PE ratio of 13.16, a P/E/G ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 1.11. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $571.26 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $597.35. 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 (NYSE:MLM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The construction company reported $5.00 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.76 by $0.24. The firm had revenue of $1.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.87 billion. Martin Marietta Materials had a net margin of 36.73% and a return on equity of 9.49%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 21.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $5.43 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. will post 19.07 EPS for the current year.

Martin Marietta Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 1st will be given a $0.84 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 1st. This is a positive change from Martin Marietta Materials's previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. This represents a $3.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. Martin Marietta Materials's dividend payout ratio is presently 8.16%.

Martin Marietta Materials Company Profile

Martin Marietta Materials, Inc NYSE: MLM is a leading producer of aggregates and heavy building materials serving the construction and infrastructure markets. The company operates quarries, sand and gravel pits, and other extraction sites to supply crushed stone, sand and gravel, and a range of value‑added products for use in roads, bridges, commercial and residential construction, and other civil engineering projects.

In addition to its core aggregates business, Martin Marietta manufactures and sells asphalt, ready‑mixed concrete and related materials and services.

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