Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM) Coverage Initiated at Stifel Nicolaus

Stock analysts at Stifel Nicolaus started coverage on shares of Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM) in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The firm set a “buy” rating and a $559.00 price target on the construction company’s stock. Stifel Nicolaus’ target price suggests a potential upside of 16.87% from the company’s current price.

Several other research firms also recently weighed in on MLM. HSBC upgraded Martin Marietta Materials from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $690.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Loop Capital lowered their price objective on Martin Marietta Materials from $680.00 to $645.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Wolfe Research raised Martin Marietta Materials from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $563.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on Martin Marietta Materials from $701.00 to $600.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Raymond James lowered their price objective on Martin Marietta Materials from $630.00 to $600.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $634.36.

Martin Marietta Materials Stock Performance

Martin Marietta Materials stock opened at $478.30 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 $29.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.79, a PEG ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.89. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $521.35 and its 200 day moving average is $544.16. Martin Marietta Materials has a twelve month low of $451.09 and a twelve month high of $633.23.

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

Insider Transactions at Martin Marietta Materials

In related news, SVP Michael J. Petro acquired 550 shares of Martin Marietta Materials stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was purchased at an average cost 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 approximately $4,082,514.45. This trade represents a 6.52 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.68% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Martin Marietta Materials

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. purchased a new stake in Martin Marietta Materials in the 4th quarter worth $28,000. First Personal Financial Services purchased a new stake in Martin Marietta Materials in the 3rd quarter worth $33,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Martin Marietta Materials in the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Martin Marietta Materials in the 4th quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Hopwood Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in Martin Marietta Materials in the 4th quarter worth $36,000. 95.04% of the stock is currently 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.