Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. $MLM Stock Holdings Lessened by Fred Alger Management LLC

Key Points

• Fred Alger Management LLC reduced its stake in Martin Marietta Materials by 6.8% in the fourth quarter, selling 11,771 shares and leaving it with 162,310 shares valued at about $101 million.
• Martin Marietta Materials reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $1.93 versus estimates of $1.78 and revenue of $1.36 billion, up 17.2% year over year.
• The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.83 per share, while analysts currently rate the stock a consensus Moderate Buy with an average price target of $681.94.

Fred Alger Management LLC lowered its stake in Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM - Free Report) by 6.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 162,310 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 11,771 shares during the period. Fred Alger Management LLC owned approximately 0.27% of Martin Marietta Materials worth $101,064,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in MLM. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 51.8% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,448,928 shares of the construction company's stock worth $1,524,853,000 after buying an additional 836,120 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Martin Marietta Materials in the fourth quarter worth approximately $354,681,000. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its position in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 31.9% in the second quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 2,340,677 shares of the construction company's stock worth $1,284,938,000 after purchasing an additional 565,856 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 1,570.3% in the third quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 108,167 shares of the construction company's stock worth $68,175,000 after purchasing an additional 115,524 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Freestone Grove Partners LP lifted its position in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 748.5% in the third quarter. Freestone Grove Partners LP now owns 124,963 shares of the construction company's stock worth $78,762,000 after purchasing an additional 110,236 shares in the last quarter. 95.04% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Martin Marietta Materials Trading Up 2.4%

NYSE:MLM opened at $602.95 on Wednesday. Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. has a 12 month low of $525.38 and a 12 month high of $710.97. The firm has a market cap of $36.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.37, a P/E/G ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 2.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The company's 50 day moving average is $589.40 and its 200-day moving average is $618.63.

Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The construction company reported $1.93 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.78 by $0.15. Martin Marietta Materials had a net margin of 38.67% and a return on equity of 10.27%. The company had revenue of $1.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.31 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.90 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 17.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. will post 19.41 EPS for the current year.

Martin Marietta Materials Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Investors of record on Monday, June 1st will be given a dividend of $0.83 per share. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 1st. Martin Marietta Materials's payout ratio is currently 7.91%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on MLM shares. Raymond James Financial set a $690.00 price target on shares of Martin Marietta Materials in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Oppenheimer began coverage on shares of Martin Marietta Materials in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. They issued a "market perform" rating for the company. Berenberg Bank set a $556.00 price objective on shares of Martin Marietta Materials and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Martin Marietta Materials from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Monday, June 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $702.00 to $664.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 6th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Martin Marietta Materials currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $681.94.

Martin Marietta Materials 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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