Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) Shares Down 0.4% – Should You Sell?

Lockheed Martin Co. (NYSE:LMT) fell 0.4% on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $543.20 and last traded at $544.56. 201,033 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 81% from the average session volume of 1,051,948 shares. The stock had previously closed at $546.80.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of Lockheed Martin from $675.00 to $665.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. StockNews.com lowered shares of Lockheed Martin from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on shares of Lockheed Martin from $600.00 to $620.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of Lockheed Martin from $560.00 to $610.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Melius Research upgraded shares of Lockheed Martin to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $611.00.

Lockheed Martin Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.66, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a current ratio of 1.30. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $579.44 and its 200-day moving average price is $517.34. The company has a market capitalization of $129.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.74, a PEG ratio of 4.47 and a beta of 0.47.

Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The aerospace company reported $6.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.50 by $0.34. The company had revenue of $17.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.38 billion. Lockheed Martin had a net margin of 9.36% and a return on equity of 101.44%. Lockheed Martin’s quarterly revenue was up 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $6.77 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Lockheed Martin Co. will post 26.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lockheed Martin Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 27th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd will be paid a $3.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $13.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.42%. This is a positive change from Lockheed Martin’s previous quarterly dividend of $3.15. Lockheed Martin’s dividend payout ratio is 47.79%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Burkett Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in Lockheed Martin in the 3rd quarter valued at about $32,000. Mattson Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lockheed Martin during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Sachetta LLC grew its position in shares of Lockheed Martin by 50.0% during the 2nd quarter. Sachetta LLC now owns 60 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Wiser Advisor Group LLC grew its position in shares of Lockheed Martin by 65.8% during the 1st quarter. Wiser Advisor Group LLC now owns 63 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A. acquired a new position in shares of Lockheed Martin during the 1st quarter worth approximately $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.