T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. Sells 136,097 Shares of Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. $MLM

Key Points

• T. Rowe Price Investment Management reduced its Martin Marietta Materials stake by 12.9% in the fourth quarter, selling 136,097 shares and leaving it with 917,565 shares worth about $571.3 million.
• Martin Marietta Materials reported better-than-expected quarterly results, posting EPS of $1.93 versus estimates of $1.78 and revenue of $1.36 billion versus $1.31 billion expected. Revenue also rose 17.2% year over year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.83 per share, payable June 30, and analysts currently rate the stock a “Moderate Buy” with an average price target of $681.94.

T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. cut its stake in shares of Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM - Free Report) by 12.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 917,565 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 136,097 shares during the period. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. owned 1.52% of Martin Marietta Materials worth $571,332,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Lido Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Martin Marietta Materials by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Lido Advisors LLC now owns 1,920 shares of the construction company's stock worth $1,209,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC grew its holdings in Martin Marietta Materials by 3.9% in the 4th quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 424 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $264,000 after buying an additional 16 shares in 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. Quadrant Capital Group LLC increased its position in Martin Marietta Materials by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 2,186 shares of the construction company's stock worth $1,361,000 after buying an additional 17 shares during the period. Finally, Fiduciary Alliance LLC increased its position in Martin Marietta Materials by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC now owns 702 shares of the construction company's stock worth $437,000 after buying an additional 18 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 95.04% of the company's stock.

Martin Marietta Materials Stock Up 3.1%

Shares of NYSE MLM opened at $609.20 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 2.28. Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $525.38 and a 52 week high of $710.97. The stock has a market capitalization of $36.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.52, a PEG ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 1.10. The stock's fifty day moving average is $589.57 and its 200 day moving average is $618.31.

Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The construction company reported $1.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.78 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $1.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.31 billion. Martin Marietta Materials had a net margin of 38.67% and a return on equity of 10.27%. Martin Marietta Materials's revenue was up 17.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.90 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. will post 19.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Martin Marietta Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 1st will be given a $0.83 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 1st. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Martin Marietta Materials's payout ratio is presently 7.91%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MLM has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Oppenheimer started coverage on shares of Martin Marietta Materials in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. They issued a "market perform" rating for the company. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $608.00 to $614.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Raymond James Financial set a $690.00 price objective on shares of Martin Marietta Materials in a report on Monday, April 27th. 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. Finally, Truist Financial raised their target price on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $710.00 to $730.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Martin Marietta Materials has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $681.94.

About Martin Marietta Materials

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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