Shell Asset Management Co. Decreases Stake in Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM)

Shell Asset Management Co. reduced its stake in shares of Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM) by 4.1% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 3,804 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 163 shares during the period. Shell Asset Management Co.’s holdings in Martin Marietta Materials were worth $1,965,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in MLM. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC grew its holdings in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 1,336 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $690,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the period. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Martin Marietta Materials by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,020 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $527,000 after acquiring an additional 19 shares during the period. Brooklyn Investment Group boosted its holdings in Martin Marietta Materials by 4.7% in the 4th quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 447 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $231,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the period. OLD National Bancorp IN boosted its holdings in Martin Marietta Materials by 4.5% in the 4th quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN now owns 483 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $249,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares during the period. Finally, Signaturefd LLC boosted its holdings in Martin Marietta Materials by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 835 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $431,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares during the period. 95.04% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Martin Marietta Materials Stock Performance

Martin Marietta Materials stock opened at $564.51 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $34.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a current ratio of 2.50, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $497.71 and a 200-day moving average of $528.88. Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $441.95 and a 52 week high of $633.23.

Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The construction company reported $1.90 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.88 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $1.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.36 billion. Martin Marietta Materials had a return on equity of 12.11% and a net margin of 30.54%. The business’s revenue was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.93 EPS. 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 will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.79 per share. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.56%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 2nd. Martin Marietta Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 18.20%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on MLM. StockNews.com upgraded Martin Marietta Materials from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut Martin Marietta Materials from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $640.00 to $560.00 in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Martin Marietta Materials from $561.00 to $576.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Loop Capital decreased their price target on Martin Marietta Materials from $645.00 to $615.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, Stephens decreased their price target on Martin Marietta Materials from $675.00 to $650.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued 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 an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $610.69.

Insider Activity at Martin Marietta Materials

In other news, SVP Michael J. Petro purchased 550 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $454.37 per share, with a total value of $249,903.50. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 8,985 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,082,514.45. The trade was a 6.52% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Donald A. Mccunniff sold 1,332 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $475.00, for a total value of $632,700.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 3,523 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,673,425. This represents a 27.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.69% of the company’s stock.

About Martin Marietta Materials

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.