FORA Capital LLC Buys 460 Shares of Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM)

FORA Capital LLC increased its stake in Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM) by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 11,386 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 460 shares during the quarter. FORA Capital LLC’s holdings in Martin Marietta Materials were worth $6,129,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its stake in Martin Marietta Materials by 411.1% in the second quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 46 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Asset Dedication LLC raised its holdings in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 1,300.0% in the 3rd quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 56 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the period. First Personal Financial Services bought a new stake in shares of Martin Marietta Materials in the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC lifted its stake in Martin Marietta Materials by 186.4% in the 2nd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 63 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pathway Financial Advisers LLC bought a new position in Martin Marietta Materials during the first quarter worth about $41,000. 95.04% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Martin Marietta Materials Stock Performance

Shares of MLM traded down $1.27 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $595.70. 36,234 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 445,898. The company has a quick ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 2.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The firm has a market cap of $36.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.10 and a beta of 0.90. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $567.95 and its 200-day simple moving average is $556.08. Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. has a 52 week low of $456.83 and a 52 week high of $633.23.

Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The construction company reported $5.91 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $6.41 by ($0.50). The company had revenue of $1.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.94 billion. Martin Marietta Materials had a net margin of 30.47% and a return on equity of 12.53%. Martin Marietta Materials’s revenue was down 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $6.94 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. will post 17.58 EPS for the current year.

Martin Marietta Materials Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.79 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.53%. Martin Marietta Materials’s dividend payout ratio is 9.85%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Loop Capital upped their price objective on Martin Marietta Materials from $600.00 to $680.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. UBS Group began coverage on Martin Marietta Materials in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $730.00 price target on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Martin Marietta Materials from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Stephens decreased their price objective on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $650.00 to $610.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 9th. Finally, Citigroup cut their target price on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $658.00 to $646.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $644.46.

Martin Marietta Materials Company Profile

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.