Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund Sells 178 Shares of Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM)

Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund reduced its holdings in shares of Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM) by 9.0% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 1,810 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 178 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund’s holdings in Martin Marietta Materials were worth $974,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 411.1% during the 2nd quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 46 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the period. Asset Dedication LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 1,300.0% during the third quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 56 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares during the period. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new stake in shares of Martin Marietta Materials in the 3rd quarter valued at $33,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC increased its position in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 186.4% during the 2nd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 63 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pathway Financial Advisers LLC bought a new position in Martin Marietta Materials during the 1st quarter valued at about $41,000. Institutional investors own 95.04% of the company’s stock.

Martin Marietta Materials Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE MLM opened at $583.03 on Monday. Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $451.37 and a fifty-two week high of $633.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $35.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.17, a P/E/G ratio of 3.90 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 2.34 and a quick ratio of 1.24. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $557.57 and its 200 day simple moving average is $556.67.

Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The construction company reported $5.91 earnings per share (EPS) 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 the consensus estimate of $1.94 billion. Martin Marietta Materials had a return on equity of 12.53% and a net margin of 30.47%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $6.94 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. will post 17.84 EPS for the current year.

Martin Marietta Materials Announces Dividend

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 paid a dividend of $0.79 per share. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.54%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. Martin Marietta Materials’s payout ratio is 9.85%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have weighed in on MLM shares. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $658.00 to $646.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Loop Capital increased their price target on Martin Marietta Materials from $600.00 to $680.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on Martin Marietta Materials from $650.00 to $635.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Barclays increased their target price on Martin Marietta Materials from $595.00 to $645.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Martin Marietta Materials from $560.00 to $515.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Martin Marietta Materials currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $634.85.

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.