Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Has $1.34 Million Stock Position in Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM)

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. decreased its stake in shares of Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM) by 3.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,595 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 92 shares during the period. Jefferies Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Martin Marietta Materials were worth $1,340,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in MLM. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. acquired a new position in Martin Marietta Materials during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Martin Marietta Materials during the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Martin Marietta Materials during the 4th quarter worth about $35,000. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. acquired a new position in Martin Marietta Materials during the 4th quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in Martin Marietta Materials by 91.9% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 71 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.04% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Donald A. Mccunniff sold 1,332 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $475.00, for a total transaction of $632,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 3,523 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,673,425. This represents a 27.44% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Michael J. Petro bought 550 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were acquired 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 in the company, valued at $4,082,514.45. This represents a 6.52% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.69% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Martin Marietta Materials Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MLM opened at $542.30 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $32.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.77, a P/E/G ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.89. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $494.38 and its 200 day simple moving average is $528.96. 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, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $441.95 and a fifty-two week high of $633.23.

Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The construction company reported $1.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.88 by $0.02. Martin Marietta Materials had a return on equity of 12.11% and a net margin of 30.54%. The business had revenue of $1.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.36 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.93 EPS. Martin Marietta Materials’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. will post 19.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Martin Marietta Materials Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.79 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.58%. Martin Marietta Materials’s payout ratio is 18.20%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on MLM. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of Martin Marietta Materials to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Martin Marietta Materials from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Stephens cut 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 report on Thursday, February 13th. Loop Capital cut their target price on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $645.00 to $615.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, Barclays cut their target price on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $645.00 to $600.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $599.69.

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.