Prudential PLC Acquires 870 Shares of Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM)

Prudential PLC grew its holdings in Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM) by 113.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,634 shares of the construction company’s stock after acquiring an additional 870 shares during the period. Prudential PLC’s holdings in Martin Marietta Materials were worth $844,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. bought a new position in Martin Marietta Materials in the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Martin Marietta Materials during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Martin Marietta Materials during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in Martin Marietta Materials in the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in Martin Marietta Materials by 91.9% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 71 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.04% of the company’s stock.

Martin Marietta Materials Stock Performance

Martin Marietta Materials stock opened at $459.19 on Tuesday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $498.65 and its 200-day moving average price is $536.58. The company has a quick ratio of 1.40, a current ratio of 2.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The company has a market cap of $28.00 billion, a PE ratio of 14.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.81. Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. has a twelve month low of $444.91 and a twelve month high of $633.23.

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

Martin Marietta Materials Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.79 per share. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.69%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. Martin Marietta Materials’s payout ratio is 9.77%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on MLM. Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $701.00 to $600.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. UBS Group cut Martin Marietta Materials from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $491.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Monday. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Martin Marietta Materials from $657.00 to $622.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded Martin Marietta Materials from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $640.00 to $560.00 in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. Finally, HSBC upgraded Martin Marietta Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $690.00 price target for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $609.43.

Insider Buying and Selling at Martin Marietta Materials

In related news, EVP Donald A. Mccunniff sold 1,332 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $475.00, for a total transaction 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. The trade was a 27.44 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Michael J. Petro bought 550 shares of Martin Marietta Materials stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $454.37 per share, for a total transaction of $249,903.50. Following the purchase, the senior vice president now owns 8,985 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,082,514.45. This trade represents a 6.52 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.68% 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.