Synovus Financial Corp Cuts Position in Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM)

Synovus Financial Corp trimmed its holdings in Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (NYSE:MLM - Free Report) by 5.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,476 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 545 shares during the period. Synovus Financial Corp's holdings in Martin Marietta Materials were worth $4,894,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Sagespring Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Martin Marietta Materials during the 4th quarter worth approximately $315,000. Optimize Financial Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Martin Marietta Materials during the 4th quarter valued at $246,000. Townsquare Capital LLC increased its position in Martin Marietta Materials by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 3,773 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $1,949,000 after acquiring an additional 123 shares during the period. Sterling Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Martin Marietta Materials by 54.5% during the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 3,505 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $1,810,000 after acquiring an additional 1,236 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Heritage Trust Co bought a new stake in shares of Martin Marietta Materials in the fourth quarter worth $239,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.04% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently commented on the company. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded Martin Marietta Materials to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Stifel Nicolaus started coverage on shares of Martin Marietta Materials in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $559.00 target price for the company. StockNews.com downgraded Martin Marietta Materials from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Raymond James dropped their price target on Martin Marietta Materials from $630.00 to $600.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Barclays lowered their target price on Martin Marietta Materials from $645.00 to $600.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $599.62.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Donald A. Mccunniff sold 1,332 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 approximately $1,673,425. This trade represents a 27.44 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Michael J. Petro acquired 550 shares of Martin Marietta Materials stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $454.37 per share, for a total transaction of $249,903.50. Following the completion of the purchase, the senior vice president now directly owns 8,985 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,082,514.45. The trade was a 6.52 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.68% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Martin Marietta Materials Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MLM traded up $2.85 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $493.92. The company had a trading volume of 251,487 shares, compared to its average volume of 488,145. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $487.12 and its 200-day moving average price is $532.67. The company has a market capitalization of $30.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.28, a P/E/G ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a current ratio of 2.50, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. has a 1 year low of $441.95 and a 1 year high of $633.23.

Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The construction company reported $4.79 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.62 by $0.17. Martin Marietta Materials had a net margin of 30.54% and a return on equity of 12.11%. On average, 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.79 per share. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.64%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. Martin Marietta Materials's payout ratio is 9.77%.

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.