Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. $MLM Shares Newly Acquired by Rakuten Investment Management Inc.

Rakuten Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM) during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 10,780 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,165,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Activest Wealth Management grew its stake in Martin Marietta Materials by 1,633.3% in the third quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 52 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares during the period. CoreCap Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 370.0% during the second quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 47 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the period. Meeder Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 67.9% during the first quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 47 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the period. WestEnd Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 1,900.0% in the 3rd quarter. WestEnd Advisors LLC now owns 60 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GK Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Martin Marietta Materials in the 3rd quarter worth $32,000. 95.04% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $720.00 to $670.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, September 23rd. Zacks Research lowered shares of Martin Marietta Materials from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 20th. Stephens reduced their price objective on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $680.00 to $600.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 2nd. Sanford C. Bernstein downgraded shares of Martin Marietta Materials to an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 2nd. Finally, HSBC decreased their target price on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $750.00 to $665.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, September 8th. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Martin Marietta Materials has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $642.60.

Martin Marietta Materials Stock Down 2.0%

Shares of NYSE:MLM traded down $10.47 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $517.36. 1,003,719 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 849,023. The stock has a market cap of $31.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. has a 12-month low of $464.92 and a 12-month high of $710.97. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $503.01 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $573.42.

Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 4th. The construction company reported $5.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.99 by ($0.52). The company had revenue of $2.37 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.24 billion. Martin Marietta Materials had a return on equity of 9.49% and a net margin of 36.73%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 28.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $6.85 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. will post 16.30 earnings per share for the current year.

Martin Marietta Materials Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 1st were paid a $0.84 dividend. This represents a $3.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 1st. This is a positive change from Martin Marietta Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. Martin Marietta Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 8.89%.

Martin Marietta Materials Company Profile

Martin Marietta Materials, Inc is a U.S.-based supplier of building materials used in construction and infrastructure projects. Its products include crushed stone, sand and gravel, cement, ready-mixed concrete and asphalt.

The company also produces specialty products through its magnesia-based business, including lime, chemicals and products used in industrial and environmental applications. Its construction materials operations serve markets across the United States.

Martin Marietta traces its roots to 1939 and has grown through acquisitions and expansion of its materials operations.