The excitement of investing in a company that can reverse its fortunes is a big draw for some speculators, so even companies that have no revenue, no profit, and a record of falling short, can manage to find investors. Unfortunately, these high risk investments often have little probability of ever paying off, and many investors pay a price to learn their lesson. While a well funded company may sustain losses for years, it will need to generate a profit eventually, or else investors will move on and the company will wither away.

In contrast to all that, many investors prefer to focus on companies like Martin Marietta Materials (NYSE:MLM), which has not only revenues, but also profits. Even if this company is fairly valued by the market, investors would agree that generating consistent profits will continue to provide Martin Marietta Materials with the means to add long-term value to shareholders.

View our latest analysis for Martin Marietta Materials

How Quickly Is Martin Marietta Materials Increasing Earnings Per Share?

Generally, companies experiencing growth in earnings per share (EPS) should see similar trends in share price. So it makes sense that experienced investors pay close attention to company EPS when undertaking investment research. Impressively, Martin Marietta Materials has grown EPS by 19% per year, compound, in the last three years. As a general rule, we'd say that if a company can keep up that sort of growth, shareholders will be beaming.

It's often helpful to take a look at earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) margins, as well as revenue growth, to get another take on the quality of the company's growth. Martin Marietta Materials shareholders can take confidence from the fact that EBIT margins are up from 18% to 24%, and revenue is growing. Ticking those two boxes is a good sign of growth, in our book.

In the chart below, you can see how the company has grown earnings and revenue, over time. For finer detail, click on the image.

Fortunately, we've got access to analyst forecasts of Martin Marietta Materials' future profits. You can do your own forecasts without looking, or you can take a peek at what the professionals are predicting.

Are Martin Marietta Materials Insiders Aligned With All Shareholders?

We would not expect to see insiders owning a large percentage of a US$36b company like Martin Marietta Materials. But we are reassured by the fact they have invested in the company. We note that their impressive stake in the company is worth US$264m. While that is a lot of skin in the game, we note this holding only totals to 0.7% of the business, which is a result of the company being so large. So despite their percentage holding being low, company management still have plenty of reasons to deliver the best outcomes for investors.