Kestra Advisory Services LLC Increases Stake in Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. $MLM

Key Points

• Kestra Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in Martin Marietta Materials by 69.6%, now owning 4,884 shares valued at $2.34 million.
• The company recently raised its quarterly dividend from $0.79 to $0.83 per share, representing an annualized yield of 0.5%.
• Wall Street analysts have generally upgraded their ratings, with UBS Group increasing its target price from $548 to $634, indicating strong market confidence in the company's future performance.

Kestra Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM - Free Report) by 69.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,884 shares of the construction company's stock after purchasing an additional 2,005 shares during the period. Kestra Advisory Services LLC's holdings in Martin Marietta Materials were worth $2,335,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Circle Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Martin Marietta Materials by 12.7% during the first quarter. Circle Wealth Management LLC now owns 947 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $453,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares in the last quarter. Compound Planning Inc. lifted its position in Martin Marietta Materials by 21.4% during the first quarter. Compound Planning Inc. now owns 891 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $426,000 after purchasing an additional 157 shares in the last quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. lifted its position in Martin Marietta Materials by 2,500.0% during the first quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 102,882 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $49,191,000 after purchasing an additional 98,925 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its position in Martin Marietta Materials by 13.3% during the first quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 142,306 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $68,042,000 after purchasing an additional 16,752 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norinchukin Bank The lifted its position in Martin Marietta Materials by 10.1% during the first quarter. Norinchukin Bank The now owns 2,382 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $1,139,000 after purchasing an additional 218 shares in the last quarter. 95.04% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MLM has been the topic of several analyst reports. Raymond James Financial lifted their target price on Martin Marietta Materials from $600.00 to $645.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Martin Marietta Materials from $609.00 to $637.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 12th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $525.00 price target (up previously from $515.00) on shares of Martin Marietta Materials in a research note on Friday, August 8th. DA Davidson increased their price target on Martin Marietta Materials from $625.00 to $700.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, August 11th. Finally, Stephens reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $700.00 price target on shares of Martin Marietta Materials in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $622.63.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Laree E. Perez sold 1,038 shares of Martin Marietta Materials stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $613.32, for a total value of $636,626.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 15,417 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,455,554.44. This trade represents a 6.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.68% of the company's stock.

Martin Marietta Materials Price Performance

MLM stock traded down $6.31 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $610.07. The company had a trading volume of 412,870 shares, compared to its average volume of 415,251. The company has a market capitalization of $36.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.84, a P/E/G ratio of 5.58 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. The company has a quick ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 2.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $584.60 and a 200 day moving average price of $537.45.

Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 7th. The construction company reported $5.43 EPS 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 business had revenue of $1.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.88 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $4.76 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. Martin Marietta Materials has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. will post 19.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Martin Marietta Materials Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be given a $0.83 dividend. This is an increase from Martin Marietta Materials's previous quarterly dividend of $0.79. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 2nd. Martin Marietta Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 17.53%.

Martin Marietta Materials Profile

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.