Critical Contrast: Martin Marietta Materials (MLM) & GCP Applied Technologies (GCP)

Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE: MLM) and GCP Applied Technologies (NYSE:GCP) are both mid-cap construction companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, valuation, dividends, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, earnings and profitabiliy.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Martin Marietta Materials and GCP Applied Technologies’ top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	EBITDA	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Martin Marietta Materials	$3.63 billion	3.88	$947.48 million	$6.61	33.99
GCP Applied Technologies	$1.34 billion	1.66	$214.90 million	$0.53	58.68

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

Profitability

This table compares Martin Marietta Materials and GCP Applied Technologies’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Martin Marietta Materials	10.91%	10.32%	5.77%
GCP Applied Technologies	2.99%	-53.77%	6.87%

Risk and Volatility

Martin Marietta Materials has a beta of 1.14, indicating that its stock price is 14% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, GCP Applied Technologies has a beta of 0.79, indicating that its stock price is 21% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and target prices for Martin Marietta Materials and GCP Applied Technologies, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Martin Marietta Materials	0	5	4	0	2.44
GCP Applied Technologies	0	0	4	0	3.00

Martin Marietta Materials presently has a consensus target price of $229.67, indicating a potential upside of 2.22%. GCP Applied Technologies has a consensus target price of $35.50, indicating a potential upside of 14.15%. Given GCP Applied Technologies’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe GCP Applied Technologies is more favorable than Martin Marietta Materials.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

96.3% of Martin Marietta Materials shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 81.4% of GCP Applied Technologies shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.1% of Martin Marietta Materials shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.7% of GCP Applied Technologies shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Dividends

Martin Marietta Materials pays an annual dividend of $1.68 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.7%. GCP Applied Technologies does not pay a dividend. Martin Marietta Materials pays out 25.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend.

Summary

Martin Marietta Materials beats GCP Applied Technologies on 11 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

Martin Marietta Materials Company Profile

Martin Marietta Materials, Inc. is a supplier of aggregates products (crushed stone, sand, and gravel) used for the construction of infrastructure, nonresidential, and residential projects. Aggregates products are also used for railroad ballast and in agricultural, utility and environmental applications. The Company’s Aggregates business operates through three segments: the Mid-America Group, Southeast Group and West Group. The Company’s business is categorized into Aggregates Business, Cement Business and Magnesia Specialties Business. Its Cement business is reported through the Cement segment. Its Magnesia Specialties business manufactures and markets magnesia-based chemical products used in industrial, agricultural, and environmental applications, and dolomitic lime sold to customers in the steel industry. Its Cement business produces Portland and specialty cements. It manufactures and markets, through its Magnesia Specialties business, magnesia-based chemical products.

GCP Applied Technologies Company Profile

GCP Applied Technologies Inc. produces and sells specialty construction chemicals, specialty building materials, and packaging sealants and coatings. The Company operates through three segments: Specialty Construction Chemicals, Specialty Building Materials and Darex Packaging Technologies. The Specialty Construction Chemicals segment manufactures and markets products to manage performance of Portland cement, and materials based on Portland cement, such as concrete admixtures and cement additives, as well as concrete production management systems. The Specialty Building Materials segment manufactures and markets building envelope products, residential building products and specialty construction products. The Darex Packaging Technologies segment manufactures and markets sealants and coatings for use in beverage and food containers, industrial containers, and other consumer and industrial applications. Its brands include ADVA, CBA, MIRA, ADPRUFE, DARABLEND and APPERTA.