Tower Research Capital LLC TRC Increases Stock Position in Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM)

Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its holdings in shares of Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM - Free Report) by 51.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,605 shares of the construction company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,571 shares during the quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC's holdings in Martin Marietta Materials were worth $2,378,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Martin Marietta Materials in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Martin Marietta Materials in the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Martin Marietta Materials during the 4th quarter worth $35,000. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Martin Marietta Materials in the fourth quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 91.9% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 71 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.04% of the company's stock.

Martin Marietta Materials Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MLM traded down $2.42 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $502.02. The company had a trading volume of 75,236 shares, compared to its average volume of 539,556. The stock has a market cap of $30.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.53, a P/E/G ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a current ratio of 2.50, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. has a 1 year low of $441.95 and a 1 year high of $633.23. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $483.45 and its 200 day simple moving average is $531.55.

Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The construction company reported $4.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.62 by $0.17. Martin Marietta Materials had a return on equity of 12.11% and a net margin of 30.54%. On average, analysts forecast that Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. will post 19.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Martin Marietta Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a $0.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.63%. Martin Marietta Materials's dividend payout ratio is currently 9.77%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Martin Marietta Materials from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Raymond James reduced their price objective on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $630.00 to $600.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Wolfe Research raised Martin Marietta Materials from a "peer perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $563.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Citigroup reduced their price target on Martin Marietta Materials from $701.00 to $600.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Loop Capital decreased their price target on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $645.00 to $615.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $599.62.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Martin Marietta Materials news, SVP Michael J. Petro bought 550 shares of Martin Marietta Materials stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $454.37 per share, with a total value of $249,903.50. Following the completion of the acquisition, the senior vice president now directly owns 8,985 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,082,514.45. This trade represents a 6.52 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Donald A. Mccunniff sold 1,332 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $475.00, for a total transaction of $632,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 3,523 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,673,425. The trade was a 27.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.68% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.