Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM) Raised to "Hold" at Wells Fargo & Company

Key Points

• Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Martin Marietta Materials to a "hold" rating, reflecting a cautious approach amid recent market analysis on the company.
• Multiple analysts have raised their target prices for MLM, with DA Davidson setting the highest at $700, alongside a consensus average target price of $621.69.
• Martin Marietta reported a miss in earnings with $5.43 EPS for the last quarter, slightly below analysts' expectations of $5.44, while revenue came in at $1.81 billion, also falling short of estimates.

Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Wells Fargo & Company to a "hold" rating in a note issued to investors on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

MLM has been the topic of a number of other reports. Raymond James Financial lifted 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. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Martin Marietta Materials in a research note on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $576.00 to $605.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 28th. DA Davidson boosted their price target on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $625.00 to $700.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, August 11th. Finally, Stephens reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $700.00 price target on shares of Martin Marietta Materials in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $621.69.

Martin Marietta Materials Price Performance

Shares of MLM stock opened at $633.52 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 2.35 and a quick ratio of 1.21. The firm's 50-day moving average is $614.76 and its two-hundred day moving average is $561.79. Martin Marietta Materials has a 12 month low of $441.95 and a 12 month high of $640.00. The company has a market capitalization of $38.21 billion, a PE ratio of 35.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.77 and a beta of 1.01.

Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The construction company reported $5.43 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $5.44 by ($0.01). Martin Marietta Materials had a return on equity of 11.88% and a net margin of 16.47%.The firm had revenue of $1.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.88 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $4.76 earnings per share. Martin Marietta Materials's revenue for the quarter was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. Martin Marietta Materials has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Analysts predict that Martin Marietta Materials will post 19.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Laree E. Perez sold 1,038 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 of the company's stock, valued at $9,455,554.44. This represents a 6.31% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.69% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Martin Marietta Materials

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MLM. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its stake in Martin Marietta Materials by 34.7% during the 1st quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 423 shares of the construction company's stock worth $205,000 after buying an additional 109 shares during the period. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Martin Marietta Materials during the 1st quarter worth approximately $251,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in Martin Marietta Materials by 22.7% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,459 shares of the construction company's stock worth $698,000 after buying an additional 270 shares during the period. CX Institutional grew its holdings in Martin Marietta Materials by 8.3% during the 1st quarter. CX Institutional now owns 470 shares of the construction company's stock worth $225,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp grew its holdings in Martin Marietta Materials by 5.0% during the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 7,357 shares of the construction company's stock worth $3,518,000 after acquiring an additional 352 shares in the last quarter. 95.04% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.

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