Quantbot Technologies LP Acquires 1,680 Shares of Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM)

Quantbot Technologies LP boosted its holdings in Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM) by 147.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,816 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 1,680 shares during the quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP’s holdings in Martin Marietta Materials were worth $1,454,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MLM. Virtu Financial LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 13.1% in the fourth quarter. Virtu Financial LLC now owns 6,252 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $3,229,000 after acquiring an additional 725 shares during the last quarter. Adams Natural Resources Fund Inc. increased its position in Martin Marietta Materials by 10.2% during the 4th quarter. Adams Natural Resources Fund Inc. now owns 5,400 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $2,789,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. Sciencast Management LP bought a new position in Martin Marietta Materials in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $2,948,000. TD Private Client Wealth LLC boosted its position in Martin Marietta Materials by 4.4% in the fourth quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 850 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $439,000 after buying an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lee Danner & Bass Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Martin Marietta Materials during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Institutional investors own 95.04% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Martin Marietta Materials news, SVP Michael J. Petro acquired 550 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $454.37 per share, with a total value of $249,903.50. Following the completion of the purchase, the senior vice president now owns 8,985 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,082,514.45. This represents a 6.52 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Donald A. Mccunniff sold 1,332 shares of Martin Marietta Materials stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $475.00, for a total transaction of $632,700.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 3,523 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,673,425. This represents a 27.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have issued reports on MLM. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Martin Marietta Materials from $657.00 to $622.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $645.00 to $600.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 13th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Martin Marietta Materials from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, February 20th. BNP Paribas cut shares of Martin Marietta Materials from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered shares of Martin Marietta Materials from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $640.00 to $560.00 in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $628.64.

Martin Marietta Materials Stock Up 2.8 %

Martin Marietta Materials stock opened at $490.51 on Tuesday. 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 capitalization of $29.91 billion, a PE ratio of 15.17, a PEG ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.89. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $510.82 and its 200 day moving average is $539.41. Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. has a 12-month low of $448.50 and a 12-month high of $633.23.

Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The construction company reported $4.79 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. will post 19.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Martin Marietta Materials Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be paid a $0.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.64%. Martin Marietta Materials’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 9.77%.

Martin Marietta Materials 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.