02:20 AM EDT, 05/06/2025 (MT Newswires) -- CFRA, an independent research provider, has provided MT Newswires with the following research alert. Analysts at CFRA have summarized their opinion as follows:

We lift our 12-month target by $16 to $581, on an EV/EBITDA of 17.2x our 2025 EBITDA estimate, an 11% premium to MLM's five-year average of 15.5x. We raise our 2025 EPS view by $0.11 to $18.97 and 2026's by $0.59 to $22.07. MLM posted Q1 adj. EPS of $1.93 vs. $1.77 (+8.7% Y/Y, +2.5% vs. consensus), as sales grew 8.2% Y/Y on a top-line beat of 0.7%. Our valuation premium (+11% vs. five-year avg.) is in line with the premium used in our valuation of close competitor Vulcan Materials Company (VMC) (18.1x vs. 16.3x). Our Hold opinion reflects our view of limited upside potential for share price returns for MLM, paired with our view of VMC as a more attractive investment. Through 2027, we expect MLM to lag VMC in sales growth (7.5% three-year CAGR vs. 8.2%), adj. EBITDA growth (10.2% vs. 12.5%), and leverage (1.0x vs. 0.8x). At its current forward EV/EBITDA multiple of 16.6x, MLM is trading at a 7.1% premium to its five-year avg. of 15.5x, whereas VMC is trading only 0.6% above its long-term avg. (16.4x vs. 16.3x).