Weitz Investment Management Inc. Increases Position in Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM)

Key Points

• Weitz Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Martin Marietta Materials by 1.5%, acquiring an additional 600 shares to reach a total of 41,275 shares valued at approximately $19.74 million.
• Analysts have set a consensus target price of $605.93 for Martin Marietta Materials, with various ratings, including one sell, three hold, twelve buy, and two strong buy ratings.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.79 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend of $3.16 and a dividend yield of 0.5%.

Weitz Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM - Free Report) by 1.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 41,275 shares of the construction company's stock after purchasing an additional 600 shares during the period. Weitz Investment Management Inc. owned 0.07% of Martin Marietta Materials worth $19,735,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Wayfinding Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Martin Marietta Materials in the first quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Chilton Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Martin Marietta Materials in the first quarter valued at about $30,000. IMA Advisory Services Inc. bought a new position in Martin Marietta Materials in the first quarter valued at about $40,000. Valley National Advisers Inc. raised its stake in Martin Marietta Materials by 193.9% during the first quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 97 shares of the construction company's stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bellwether Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Martin Marietta Materials in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $46,000. 95.04% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Martin Marietta Materials Trading Down 1.3%

Shares of MLM traded down $8.05 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $599.45. The company had a trading volume of 618,391 shares, compared to its average volume of 374,343. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 2.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. The firm has a market cap of $36.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.53, a P/E/G ratio of 5.55 and a beta of 0.89. Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. has a 52-week low of $441.95 and a 52-week high of $633.23. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $559.05 and its 200 day moving average price is $527.77.

Martin Marietta Materials Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 2nd were given a $0.79 dividend. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 2nd. Martin Marietta Materials's payout ratio is currently 18.20%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada assumed coverage on shares of Martin Marietta Materials in a report on Monday, June 16th. They set a "sector perform" rating and a $515.00 price target on the stock. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Martin Marietta Materials from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 31st. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Martin Marietta Materials from $559.00 to $609.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $577.00 to $643.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Martin Marietta Materials from $576.00 to $605.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $611.73.

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.