Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. $MLM Shares Sold by UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC

Key Points

• UBS Asset Management trimmed its stake in Martin Marietta Materials by 7.1%, now holding approximately $140.34 million worth of shares.
• Several institutional investors have recently acquired stakes in Martin Marietta, bringing institutional ownership to 95.04% of the company.
• Martin Marietta announced an increase in its quarterly dividend from $0.79 to $0.83, indicating strong performance despite missing EPS estimates in their latest earnings report.

UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC trimmed its position in Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM - Free Report) by 7.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 293,511 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 22,390 shares during the quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC owned about 0.49% of Martin Marietta Materials worth $140,336,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wayfinding Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Martin Marietta Materials in the 1st quarter worth approximately $29,000. Chilton Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Martin Marietta Materials in the 1st quarter worth approximately $30,000. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT acquired a new position in shares of Martin Marietta Materials in the 1st quarter worth approximately $30,000. IMA Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Martin Marietta Materials in the 1st quarter worth approximately $40,000. Finally, Valley National Advisers Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 193.9% in the 1st quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 97 shares of the construction company's stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. 95.04% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Laree E. Perez sold 1,038 shares of Martin Marietta Materials stock in a transaction on Friday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $613.32, for a total transaction of $636,626.16. Following the sale, the director directly owned 15,417 shares in the company, valued at $9,455,554.44. This trade represents a 6.31% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.69% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Martin Marietta Materials Stock Up 2.2%

Shares of MLM traded up $13.63 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $623.32. The stock had a trading volume of 91,497 shares, compared to its average volume of 467,472. Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. has a 1-year low of $441.95 and a 1-year high of $633.23. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $597.06 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $545.46. The company has a market cap of $37.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.58, a PEG ratio of 5.53 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 2.35 and a quick ratio of 1.21.

Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 7th. The construction company reported $5.43 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $5.44 by ($0.01). Martin Marietta Materials had a net margin of 16.47% and a return on equity of 11.88%. The firm had revenue of $1.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.88 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $4.76 earnings per share. Martin Marietta Materials's revenue for the quarter was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Martin Marietta Materials has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Equities research analysts expect 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 paid a dividend of $0.83 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 2nd. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. This is an increase from Martin Marietta Materials's previous quarterly dividend of $0.79. Martin Marietta Materials's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.41%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MLM has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $577.00 to $643.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $525.00 price objective (up from $515.00) on shares of Martin Marietta Materials in a report on Friday, August 8th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $576.00 to $605.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, July 28th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $609.00 to $637.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 12th. Finally, Raymond James Financial upped their target price on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $600.00 to $645.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $622.63.

About Martin Marietta Materials

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.