Marshall Wace LLP Decreases Stock Position in Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM)

Marshall Wace LLP lowered its position in shares of Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM) by 83.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 35,112 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 173,990 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP’s holdings in Martin Marietta Materials were worth $18,135,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. purchased a new stake in Martin Marietta Materials during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Martin Marietta Materials during the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Martin Marietta Materials during the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Martin Marietta Materials during the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake 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 worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.04% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Martin Marietta Materials

In related news, EVP Donald A. Mccunniff sold 1,332 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $475.00, for a total value of $632,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 3,523 shares in the company, valued at $1,673,425. This represents a 27.44 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Michael J. Petro purchased 550 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were bought at an average price of $454.37 per share, for a total transaction of $249,903.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 8,985 shares in the company, valued at $4,082,514.45. This represents a 6.52 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.68% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Martin Marietta Materials Stock Performance

MLM stock opened at $493.92 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $486.40 and its two-hundred day moving average is $532.47. The stock has a market capitalization of $29.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.28, a PEG ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a current ratio of 2.50. Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. has a 1 year low of $441.95 and a 1 year high of $633.23.

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

Martin Marietta Materials Announces Dividend

The firm 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. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.64%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. Martin Marietta Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 9.77%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Stephens lowered their price objective on Martin Marietta Materials from $675.00 to $650.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Truist Financial decreased their price target on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $670.00 to $610.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $645.00 to $600.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 13th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Martin Marietta Materials from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, Citigroup cut their target price on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $701.00 to $600.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $599.62.

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.