Vulcan Materials (VMC) Competitors

Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM) and Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) are both large-cap construction companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, earnings, valuation, media sentiment, risk, analyst recommendations, profitability, institutional ownership and community ranking.

Do institutionals and insiders hold more shares of MLM or VMC?

95.0% of Martin Marietta Materials shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 90.4% of Vulcan Materials shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.7% of Martin Marietta Materials shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.6% of Vulcan Materials shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Does the media prefer MLM or VMC?

In the previous week, Martin Marietta Materials had 4 more articles in the media than Vulcan Materials. MarketBeat recorded 8 mentions for Martin Marietta Materials and 4 mentions for Vulcan Materials. Vulcan Materials' average media sentiment score of 1.71 beat Martin Marietta Materials' score of 0.93 indicating that Vulcan Materials is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Martin Marietta Materials	3 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	2 Neutral mention(s)	1 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
Vulcan Materials	4 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	0 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Very Positive

Does the MarketBeat Community believe in MLM or VMC?

Vulcan Materials received 122 more outperform votes than Martin Marietta Materials when rated by MarketBeat users. Likewise, 65.79% of users gave Vulcan Materials an outperform vote while only 63.82% of users gave Martin Marietta Materials an outperform vote.

Company	Underperform	Outperform
Martin Marietta Materials	Outperform Votes 501 63.82%	Underperform Votes 284 36.18%
Vulcan Materials	Outperform Votes 623 65.79%	Underperform Votes 324 34.21%

Is MLM or VMC more profitable?

Martin Marietta Materials has a net margin of 30.47% compared to Vulcan Materials' net margin of 11.43%. Martin Marietta Materials' return on equity of 12.53% beat Vulcan Materials' return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Martin Marietta Materials	30.47%	12.53%	6.82%
Vulcan Materials	11.43%	11.88%	6.38%

Which has more risk and volatility, MLM or VMC?

Martin Marietta Materials has a beta of 0.89, indicating that its stock price is 11% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Vulcan Materials has a beta of 0.81, indicating that its stock price is 19% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Which has stronger earnings and valuation, MLM or VMC?

Martin Marietta Materials has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Vulcan Materials. Martin Marietta Materials is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Vulcan Materials, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Martin Marietta Materials	$6.51B	5.01	$1.17B	$32.09	16.63
Vulcan Materials	$7.40B	4.70	$933.20M	$6.34	41.50

Do analysts prefer MLM or VMC?

Martin Marietta Materials currently has a consensus target price of $653.08, suggesting a potential upside of 22.37%. Vulcan Materials has a consensus target price of $284.33, suggesting a potential upside of 8.06%. Given Martin Marietta Materials' stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, research analysts plainly believe Martin Marietta Materials is more favorable than Vulcan Materials.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Martin Marietta Materials	0 Sell rating(s)	2 Hold rating(s)	13 Buy rating(s)	1 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.94
Vulcan Materials	0 Sell rating(s)	4 Hold rating(s)	9 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.69

Is MLM or VMC a better dividend stock?

Martin Marietta Materials pays an annual dividend of $3.16 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.6%. Vulcan Materials pays an annual dividend of $1.84 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.7%. Martin Marietta Materials pays out 9.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Vulcan Materials pays out 29.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Vulcan Materials has raised its dividend for 11 consecutive years. Vulcan Materials is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Summary

Martin Marietta Materials beats Vulcan Materials on 15 of the 22 factors compared between the two stocks.