Eventide Asset Management LLC Invests $1.80 Million in Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. $MLM

Eventide Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 2,890 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,804,000.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Brown Advisory Inc. grew its position in Martin Marietta Materials by 46.1% during the fourth quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 11,028 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $6,867,000 after purchasing an additional 3,480 shares in the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its position in Martin Marietta Materials by 380.1% during the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 138,034 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $85,948,000 after purchasing an additional 109,285 shares in the last quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC grew its position in Martin Marietta Materials by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,605 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,622,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC grew its position in Martin Marietta Materials by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC now owns 5,731 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $3,568,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its position in Martin Marietta Materials by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 34,587 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $21,536,000 after purchasing an additional 1,069 shares in the last quarter. 95.04% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Martin Marietta Materials Price Performance

NYSE MLM opened at $575.51 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 2.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The stock has a market capitalization of $34.56 billion, a PE ratio of 13.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $589.47 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $618.98. Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. has a 12-month low of $525.38 and a 12-month high of $710.97.

Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The construction company reported $1.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.78 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $1.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.31 billion. Martin Marietta Materials had a net margin of 38.67% and a return on equity of 10.27%. The company’s revenue was up 17.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.90 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. will post 19.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Martin Marietta Materials Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 1st will be paid a $0.83 dividend. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis 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%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $785.00 price objective on shares of Martin Marietta Materials in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $702.00 to $664.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 6th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $675.00 to $640.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. Raymond James Financial set a $690.00 price objective on shares of Martin Marietta Materials in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Berenberg Bank set a $556.00 price objective on shares of Martin Marietta Materials and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $681.94.

About Martin Marietta Materials

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.