Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM) Downgraded to “Neutral” Rating by JPMorgan Chase & Co.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut shares of Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM) from an overweight rating to a neutral rating in a report released on Wednesday, Marketbeat.com reports. The firm currently has $560.00 price objective on the construction company’s stock, down from their previous price objective of $640.00.

MLM has been the topic of several other reports. StockNews.com downgraded Martin Marietta Materials from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Martin Marietta Materials from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $563.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Martin Marietta Materials from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Stephens dropped their target price on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $675.00 to $650.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $645.00 to $600.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Martin Marietta Materials currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $628.64.

Martin Marietta Materials Stock Up 0.6 %

NYSE:MLM opened at $490.92 on Wednesday. Martin Marietta Materials has a 1-year low of $448.50 and a 1-year high of $633.23. The company has a market capitalization of $29.93 billion, a PE ratio of 15.18, a P/E/G ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.89. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $512.56 and its 200-day moving average price is $539.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 2.50 and a quick ratio of 1.40.

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

Martin Marietta Materials Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.79 per share. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. Martin Marietta Materials’s payout ratio is currently 9.77%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Martin Marietta Materials news, SVP Michael J. Petro purchased 550 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were 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 directly owns 8,985 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,082,514.45. The trade was a 6.52 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Donald A. Mccunniff sold 1,332 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $475.00, for a total transaction of $632,700.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 3,523 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,673,425. The trade was a 27.44 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.68% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Martin Marietta Materials by 76.2% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,628,701 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $876,648,000 after purchasing an additional 704,460 shares in the last quarter. AMG National Trust Bank boosted its holdings in Martin Marietta Materials by 16.5% in the 3rd quarter. AMG National Trust Bank now owns 438 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $236,000 after buying an additional 62 shares during the period. Quest Partners LLC increased its stake in Martin Marietta Materials by 57.8% in the 3rd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 1,504 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $810,000 after buying an additional 551 shares in the last quarter. Caprock Group LLC raised its holdings in Martin Marietta Materials by 6.2% during the third quarter. Caprock Group LLC now owns 1,923 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,035,000 after acquiring an additional 113 shares during the period. Finally, Prospera Financial Services Inc grew its position in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 55.1% during the third quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc now owns 833 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $449,000 after purchasing an additional 296 shares in the last quarter. 95.04% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.