Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM) Sets New 1-Year High – Time to Buy?

Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM) shares hit a new 52-week high on Friday . The stock traded as high as $667.66 and last traded at $667.1050, with a volume of 396586 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $638.11.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MLM has been the subject of several research analyst reports. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $705.00 to $723.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 7th. DA Davidson set a $690.00 price objective on Martin Marietta Materials in a report on Thursday, November 6th. Citigroup upped their target price on Martin Marietta Materials from $754.00 to $758.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Martin Marietta Materials from $670.00 to $700.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Martin Marietta Materials from $620.00 to $610.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $668.67.

Martin Marietta Materials Trading Up 4.5%

The stock has a market capitalization of $40.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.17 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a current ratio of 2.97, a quick ratio of 2.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $621.22 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $607.55.

Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The construction company reported $5.97 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.62 by ($0.65). Martin Marietta Materials had a net margin of 17.34% and a return on equity of 11.68%. The company had revenue of $1.85 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.06 billion. On average, analysts expect that Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. will post 19.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Martin Marietta Materials Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 1st were issued a dividend of $0.83 per share. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 1st. Martin Marietta Materials’s dividend payout ratio is 17.50%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Quent Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Martin Marietta Materials in the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp bought a new stake in shares of Martin Marietta Materials during the 3rd quarter worth $27,000. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Martin Marietta Materials in the second quarter valued at about $28,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Martin Marietta Materials in the third quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, NewSquare Capital LLC raised its stake in Martin Marietta Materials by 62.2% during the second quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 60 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 23 shares in the last quarter. 95.04% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Martin Marietta Materials Company Profile

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.