Griffin Asset Management Inc. Boosts Stock Position in Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. $MLM

Griffin Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM) by 93.0% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 4,150 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,000 shares during the quarter. Griffin Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Martin Marietta Materials were worth $2,584,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Optima Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Martin Marietta Materials in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp purchased a new position in shares of Martin Marietta Materials in the third quarter valued at $27,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Martin Marietta Materials in the third quarter valued at $32,000. Grey Fox Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Martin Marietta Materials in the third quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA purchased a new position in shares of Martin Marietta Materials in the fourth quarter valued at $36,000. 95.04% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Martin Marietta Materials Stock Up 1.6%

NYSE:MLM opened at $541.32 on Thursday. Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. has a twelve month low of $525.38 and a twelve month high of $710.97. The company has a market cap of $32.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.13. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $595.04 and a 200-day simple moving average of $623.93. The company has a current ratio of 2.28, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47.

Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The construction company reported $1.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.78 by $0.15. Martin Marietta Materials had a return on equity of 10.27% and a net margin of 38.67%.The business had revenue of $1.36 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.31 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.90 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. will post 19.32 EPS for the current year.

Martin Marietta Materials Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Investors of record on Monday, June 1st will be issued a $0.83 dividend. This represents a $3.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 1st. Martin Marietta Materials’s payout ratio is presently 7.91%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Loop Capital lowered shares of Martin Marietta Materials from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $690.00 target price for the company. in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Martin Marietta Materials from $608.00 to $614.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Stephens reduced their target price on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $740.00 to $735.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Zacks Research raised shares of Martin Marietta Materials from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Finally, Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $675.00 to $640.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Martin Marietta Materials currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $689.81.

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.