Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) Trading 0.3% Higher – Here’s Why

Lockheed Martin Co. (NYSE:LMT)’s stock price traded up 0.3% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $465.94 and last traded at $463.03. 288,684 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 74% from the average session volume of 1,118,792 shares. The stock had previously closed at $461.50.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an “equal weight” rating on shares of Lockheed Martin in a research report on Monday. StockNews.com downgraded Lockheed Martin from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut Lockheed Martin from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $611.00 to $523.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Lockheed Martin from $555.00 to $525.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Truist Financial began coverage on Lockheed Martin in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $579.00 target price on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lockheed Martin has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $554.20.

Lockheed Martin Stock Performance

The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $461.39 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $518.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.10, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 0.95. The company has a market cap of $109.94 billion, a PE ratio of 20.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.43.

Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The aerospace company reported $7.67 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.58 by $1.09. Lockheed Martin had a return on equity of 101.47% and a net margin of 7.51%. Research analysts anticipate that Lockheed Martin Co. will post 27.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Lockheed Martin Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a dividend of $3.30 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $13.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.83%. Lockheed Martin’s dividend payout ratio is currently 59.30%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Robert M. Lightfoot, Jr. sold 3,213 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $442.42, for a total transaction of $1,421,495.46. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 2,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $884,840. This represents a 61.63 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Harry Edward Paul III sold 707 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $442.61, for a total value of $312,925.27. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 2,278 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,008,265.58. This represents a 23.69 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 7,133 shares of company stock worth $3,155,916 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Lockheed Martin

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in LMT. Virtue Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Lockheed Martin by 112.8% in the 3rd quarter. Virtue Capital Management LLC now owns 2,249 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,315,000 after acquiring an additional 1,192 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can raised its stake in Lockheed Martin by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 656,807 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $382,498,000 after acquiring an additional 13,253 shares during the last quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc. raised its stake in Lockheed Martin by 79.9% in the 3rd quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc. now owns 12,068 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $7,054,000 after acquiring an additional 5,361 shares during the last quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund raised its stake in Lockheed Martin by 51.7% in the 4th quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund now owns 9,528 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $4,630,000 after acquiring an additional 3,247 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in Lockheed Martin by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 92,131 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $44,770,000 after acquiring an additional 2,011 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.19% of the company’s stock.

Lockheed Martin Company Profile

Lockheed Martin Corporation, a security and aerospace company, engages in the research, design, development, manufacture, integration, and sustainment of technology systems, products, and services worldwide. The company operates through Aeronautics, Missiles and Fire Control, Rotary and Mission Systems, and Space segments.