Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. MLM announced a 7% hike in quarterly dividend payout, reaffirming its ongoing commitment to enhancing shareholder rewards. This ninth consecutive year hikes underscore the company's emphasis on a well-rounded approach to capital allocation, achieved through a strong balance sheet, solid aggregates-led business model and a commitment to operational excellence.
Shares of this producer and supplier of construction aggregates and other heavy building materials rose 2.7% during the trading session on Aug 15.
Martin Marietta raised the dividend payout to 79 cents per share (or $3.16 annually) from 74 cents (or $2.96 annually). The amount will be paid on Sep 30, 2024, to shareholders of record as of Sep 3.
Factors Supporting Dividend Hikes
Shares of MLM have gained 8.2% so far this year compared with the Zacks Building Products - Concrete and Aggregates industry’s growth of 3.4%. The company is benefiting from its strong aggregates pricing strategy, strength in public construction and accretive acquisitions.
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Martin Marietta is a prominent American provider of construction aggregates essential for constructing highways, infrastructure ventures, as well as residential, commercial, and industrial buildings. The company's strategic focus revolves around leveraging the core demand drivers in public construction endeavors. Furthermore, Martin Marietta has been actively broadening its reach and offerings through consistent acquisitions, thereby enhancing its operational scope and portfolio diversity.
Looking into the recently released second-quarter results, Martin Marietta faced temporary headwinds, primarily due to historic rainfall in Texas and the Midwest, along with restrictive monetary policies that dampened product demand. Despite these challenges, the company delivered record aggregates profitability and its best safety performance to date. Martin Marietta's resilience was further highlighted by a 9% increase in aggregates gross profit per ton and improved adjusted EBITDA margins (up 40 basis points from a year ago).
Additionally, the acquisition of Blue Water Industries in April bolstered its presence in key markets, such as Tennessee and South Florida, aligning with the SOAR 2025 growth strategy. While softer demand in the private construction sector (due to higher interest rates) led to a slight downward adjustment in full-year EBITDA guidance, the company expects a rebound. With underbuilt single-family housing and favorable economic indicators, Martin Marietta anticipates a recovery as monetary conditions ease in late 2024.
The company has been regularly enhancing shareholders’ returns through repurchases and dividends, given its stable balance sheet scenario and solid prospects. During the first half of 2024, the company returned $542 million to shareholders through dividends and share buybacks. As of Jun 30, 2024, there were 11.9 million shares still available for repurchase under the current authorization. As of Jun 30, 2024, Martin Marietta had cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash of $109 million. Also, it had $1.2 billion of unused borrowing capacity on its existing credit facilities at June-end.
Zacks Rank & Key Picks
Martin Marietta currently sports a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
Some better-ranked stocks from the Construction sector are:
Sterling Infrastructure, Inc. STRL presently carries a Zacks Rank of 2 (Buy). It has a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 17.4%, on average. Shares of STRL have soared 30.4% year to date (YTD). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for STRL’s 2024 sales and earnings per share (EPS) indicates an increase of 9.7% and 26.6%, respectively, from the year-ago period’s levels.
Dycom Industries, Inc. DY currently carries a Zacks Rank #2. It has a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 30.2%, on average. Shares of DY have surged 66.5% YTD.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for DY’s 2025 sales and EPS suggests growth of 11% and 8.8%, respectively, from the year-ago period’s levels.
Armstrong World Industries, Inc. AWI currently carries a Zacks Rank of 2. AWI delivered a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 15.4%, on average. The stock has surged 24.8% YTD.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for AWI’s 2024 sales and EPS indicates growth of 9.9% and 13.2%, respectively, from the previous year’s levels.
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Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. (MLM) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Armstrong World Industries, Inc. (AWI) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Dycom Industries, Inc. (DY) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Sterling Infrastructure, Inc. (STRL) : Free Stock Analysis Report
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