Northeast Financial Consultants Inc Sells 642 Shares of Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. $MLM

Key Points

• Northeast Financial Consultants Inc has reduced its stake in Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. by 17.6%, selling 642 shares to hold a total of 3,000 shares worth approximately $1.43 million.
• Several institutional investors have increased their positions in Martin Marietta Materials, with Baird Financial Group seeing a 56.4% increase in its stake during the last quarter.
• The company reported quarterly earnings of $5.43 per share, slightly below expectations, with revenue of $1.81 billion, while also announcing an increase in its quarterly dividend from $0.79 to $0.83.

Northeast Financial Consultants Inc trimmed its position in Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM - Free Report) by 17.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,000 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 642 shares during the period. Northeast Financial Consultants Inc's holdings in Martin Marietta Materials were worth $1,434,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MLM. Baird Financial Group Inc. grew its position in Martin Marietta Materials by 56.4% in the 4th quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 4,978 shares of the construction company's stock worth $2,571,000 after purchasing an additional 1,796 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers grew its position in Martin Marietta Materials by 10.0% in the 4th quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 9,282 shares of the construction company's stock worth $4,794,000 after purchasing an additional 847 shares in the last quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc grew its position in Martin Marietta Materials by 5.4% in the 4th quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc now owns 22,245 shares of the construction company's stock worth $11,490,000 after purchasing an additional 1,145 shares in the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth grew its position in Martin Marietta Materials by 9.3% in the 4th quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 4,042 shares of the construction company's stock worth $2,088,000 after purchasing an additional 345 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC grew its position in Martin Marietta Materials by 375.7% in the 4th quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 9,813 shares of the construction company's stock worth $5,068,000 after purchasing an additional 7,750 shares in the last quarter. 95.04% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Laree E. Perez sold 1,038 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $613.32, for a total value of $636,626.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 15,417 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,455,554.44. This trade represents a 6.31% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.68% of the company's stock.

Martin Marietta Materials Stock Up 0.7%

MLM opened at $626.70 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $589.16 and a 200 day moving average of $540.00. The company has a market cap of $37.80 billion, a PE ratio of 34.76, a price-to-earnings-growth 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. The company has a current ratio of 2.35, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56.

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

Martin Marietta Materials Increases Dividend

The firm 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 $0.83 dividend. This is a boost 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 yield of 0.5%. Martin Marietta Materials's payout ratio is 18.41%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MLM has been the subject of a number of research reports. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $576.00 to $605.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 28th. DA Davidson increased their target price on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $625.00 to $700.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, August 11th. Stephens reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $700.00 target price on shares of Martin Marietta Materials in a research report on Monday, August 4th. UBS Group raised shares of Martin Marietta Materials from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their target price for the company from $548.00 to $634.00 in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $609.00 to $637.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. Two investment 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, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $622.63.

Martin Marietta Materials Company 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.

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