Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM) Sets New 52-Week Low – Time to Sell?

Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM)’s share price hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $490.51 and last traded at $492.2670, with a volume of 148401 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $496.76.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on MLM. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Martin Marietta Materials from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $581.00 to $609.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 9th. Wolfe Research set a $648.00 price target on shares of Martin Marietta Materials in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Martin Marietta Materials from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $664.00 to $639.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. Finally, Berenberg Bank set a $556.00 target price on shares of Martin Marietta Materials and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Martin Marietta Materials currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $667.53.

Martin Marietta Materials Trading Down 0.8%

The firm has a fifty day moving average of $536.26 and a two-hundred day moving average of $573.15. The company has a market cap of $29.48 billion, a PE ratio of 12.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 1.10. 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 (NYSE:MLM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The construction company reported $5.00 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.76 by $0.24. The business had revenue of $1.95 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.87 billion. Martin Marietta Materials had a net margin of 36.73% and a return on equity of 9.49%. The company’s revenue was up 21.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $5.43 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. will post 18.69 EPS for the current year.

Martin Marietta Materials Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.84 per share. This represents a $3.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 1st. This is an increase from Martin Marietta Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. Martin Marietta Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 8.26%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of MLM. Lido Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Lido Advisors LLC now owns 1,920 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,209,000 after acquiring an additional 15 shares in the last quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. raised its stake in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 31.4% during the 4th quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 67 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 16 shares during the period. AMG National Trust Bank raised its stake in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 3.6% during the 1st quarter. AMG National Trust Bank now owns 495 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $291,000 after purchasing an additional 17 shares during the period. AlTi Global Inc. raised its stake in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 1.2% during the 1st quarter. AlTi Global Inc. now owns 1,496 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $881,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares during the period. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in Martin Marietta Materials by 3.8% during the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 522 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $325,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. 95.04% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Martin Marietta Materials

Martin Marietta Materials, Inc is a U.S.-based supplier of construction aggregates and other building materials. The company produces crushed stone, sand and gravel used in infrastructure, commercial, residential and industrial construction projects.

Its products and services also include cement, ready-mixed concrete, asphalt and paving materials. Martin Marietta serves customers involved in roads, bridges, airports, buildings and other essential infrastructure, with operations concentrated across several regions of the United States.

The company was established in 1993 as an independent, publicly traded materials business formed from the construction materials operations of Martin Marietta Corporation.