Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 33,679 Shares of Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. $MLM

Key Points

• Principal Financial Group trimmed its stake in Martin Marietta by 1.5%, selling 33,679 shares and now holds 2,170,746 shares (about 3.6% of MLM, ~$1.35B), with the stock representing roughly 0.7% of Principal's portfolio and its 28th largest holding.
• Martin Marietta recently beat estimates (EPS $1.93 vs. $1.78) with revenue up 17.2% year-over-year, and analysts carry a consensus Moderate Buy rating with an average target of $688.81.

Principal Financial Group Inc. decreased its stake in Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM - Free Report) by 1.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,170,746 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 33,679 shares during the period. Martin Marietta Materials comprises about 0.7% of Principal Financial Group Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 28th largest holding. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 3.60% of Martin Marietta Materials worth $1,351,661,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Optima Capital LLC bought a new position in Martin Marietta Materials in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Quent Capital LLC bought a new position in Martin Marietta Materials in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp bought a new position in Martin Marietta Materials in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Martin Marietta Materials in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Grey Fox Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Martin Marietta Materials in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Institutional investors own 95.04% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MLM has been the subject of several research reports. Zacks Research raised shares of Martin Marietta Materials from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their target price on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $630.00 to $615.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. B. Riley Financial upgraded shares of Martin Marietta Materials from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $700.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 2nd. Raymond James Financial set a $690.00 target price on shares of Martin Marietta Materials in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Martin Marietta Materials from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $688.81.

Martin Marietta Materials Stock Down 2.0%

NYSE:MLM opened at $602.51 on Tuesday. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $615.35 and its 200 day simple moving average is $627.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 2.28 and a quick ratio of 1.11. Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. has a one year low of $530.86 and a one year high of $710.97. The company has a market cap of $36.31 billion, a PE ratio of 14.36, a P/E/G ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 1.13.

Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The construction company reported $1.93 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 business had revenue of $1.36 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.31 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.90 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 17.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. will post 19.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Martin Marietta Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 2nd were given a $0.83 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 2nd. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Martin Marietta Materials's payout ratio is 7.91%.

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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