Cannell & Spears LLC Increases Stock Holdings in Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. $MLM

Cannell & Spears LLC boosted its holdings in Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM) by 54.2% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 81,257 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 28,549 shares during the quarter. Cannell & Spears LLC’s holdings in Martin Marietta Materials were worth $47,710,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Optima Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Martin Marietta Materials in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 67.9% during the 1st quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 47 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 19 shares during the last quarter. Garton & Associates Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Martin Marietta Materials during the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Reflection Asset Management purchased a new position in shares of Martin Marietta Materials during the 4th quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of Martin Marietta Materials in the third quarter worth approximately $38,000. 95.04% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Martin Marietta Materials Stock Up 2.5%

Shares of NYSE:MLM opened at $560.71 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $575.98 and a 200-day simple moving average of $610.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $33.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.36, a PEG ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.10. Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. has a 1 year low of $525.38 and a 1 year high of $710.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 2.28.

Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The construction company reported $1.93 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.78 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $1.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.31 billion. Martin Marietta Materials had a net margin of 38.67% and a return on equity of 10.27%. Martin Marietta Materials’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.90 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. will post 19.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Martin Marietta Materials Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 1st were 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 of this dividend was Monday, June 1st. Martin Marietta Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 7.91%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on MLM shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Martin Marietta Materials from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, July 20th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $702.00 to $664.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Oppenheimer started coverage on shares of Martin Marietta Materials in a report on Thursday, May 28th. They issued a “market perform” rating on the stock. B. Riley Financial raised shares of Martin Marietta Materials from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $700.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. Finally, Barclays dropped their price objective on Martin Marietta Materials from $675.00 to $640.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Martin Marietta Materials has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $681.53.

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.