Zacks Research Issues Negative Outlook for MLM Earnings

Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM) – Research analysts at Zacks Research cut their Q3 2024 EPS estimates for Martin Marietta Materials in a note issued to investors on Monday, October 28th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now forecasts that the construction company will post earnings per share of $6.74 for the quarter, down from their previous forecast of $7.22. The consensus estimate for Martin Marietta Materials’ current full-year earnings is $19.07 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Martin Marietta Materials’ Q4 2024 earnings at $4.94 EPS, FY2024 earnings at $18.87 EPS, Q1 2025 earnings at $2.32 EPS, Q2 2025 earnings at $6.56 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $7.66 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $5.44 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $21.98 EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at $2.37 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $6.87 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $8.23 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $23.21 EPS.

Several other equities analysts have also commented on MLM. StockNews.com lowered Martin Marietta Materials from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Truist Financial reduced their price target on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $700.00 to $670.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Citigroup reduced their target price on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $658.00 to $646.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Martin Marietta Materials from $560.00 to $515.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on Martin Marietta Materials from $595.00 to $645.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $626.92.

Martin Marietta Materials Price Performance

MLM stock opened at $592.34 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 1.86 and a quick ratio of 0.94. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $539.92 and a 200-day simple moving average of $556.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $36.20 billion, a PE ratio of 18.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.62 and a beta of 0.91. Martin Marietta Materials has a 1 year low of $404.93 and a 1 year high of $626.67.

Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The construction company reported $5.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.41 by ($0.50). Martin Marietta Materials had a net margin of 30.80% and a return on equity of 13.85%. The company had revenue of $1.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.94 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $6.94 EPS. Martin Marietta Materials’s revenue was down 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year.

Martin Marietta Materials Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.79 per share. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 3rd. This is a positive change from Martin Marietta Materials’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.74. Martin Marietta Materials’s dividend payout ratio is currently 9.60%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position 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 buying an additional 704,460 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its stake in Martin Marietta Materials by 114.3% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 980,699 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $602,092,000 after buying an additional 523,038 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 2.1% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 623,681 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $337,903,000 after purchasing an additional 12,759 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 2.6% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 465,703 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $252,318,000 after acquiring an additional 11,749 shares during the period. Finally, William Blair Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Martin Marietta Materials by 1.0% during the second quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 374,811 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $203,073,000 after buying an additional 3,598 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.04% of the company’s stock.

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.