Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM) Lowered to "Hold" Rating by BNP Paribas

Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM - Get Free Report) was downgraded by stock analysts at BNP Paribas from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note issued on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other research firms also recently commented on MLM. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Martin Marietta Materials from $595.00 to $645.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Martin Marietta Materials from $610.00 to $657.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Loop Capital raised their price target on Martin Marietta Materials from $600.00 to $680.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on Martin Marietta Materials from $650.00 to $635.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Martin Marietta Materials from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $655.77.

Martin Marietta Materials Stock Down 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE:MLM traded down $3.10 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $557.08. 157,138 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 443,847. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 2.34. Martin Marietta Materials has a 52-week low of $478.53 and a 52-week high of $633.23. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $577.91 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $555.96. The company has a market capitalization of $34.05 billion, a PE ratio of 17.46, a P/E/G ratio of 3.94 and a beta of 0.89.

Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The construction company reported $5.91 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $6.41 by ($0.50). The business had revenue of $1.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.94 billion. Martin Marietta Materials had a return on equity of 12.53% and a net margin of 30.47%. The company's quarterly revenue was down 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $6.94 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Martin Marietta Materials will post 17.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its stake in Martin Marietta Materials by 411.1% during the second quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 46 shares of the construction company's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the period. Asset Dedication LLC lifted its stake in Martin Marietta Materials by 1,300.0% during the third quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 56 shares of the construction company's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the period. First Personal Financial Services bought a new position in Martin Marietta Materials during the third quarter worth about $33,000. Rothschild Investment LLC bought a new position in Martin Marietta Materials during the second quarter worth about $43,000. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Martin Marietta Materials during the third quarter worth about $49,000. Institutional investors 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.