Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) Trading 0.7% Higher – Here’s What Happened

Lockheed Martin Co. (NYSE:LMT)’s share price rose 0.7% on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $475.69 and last traded at $472.40. Approximately 169,228 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 85% from the average daily volume of 1,101,186 shares. The stock had previously closed at $469.28.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LMT has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating on shares of Lockheed Martin in a research note on Monday, March 10th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Lockheed Martin from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on shares of Lockheed Martin from $570.00 to $550.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Lockheed Martin from $565.00 to $515.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of Lockheed Martin from $700.00 to $600.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $554.20.

Lockheed Martin Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.10, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 1.13. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $461.50 and its 200-day simple moving average is $516.79. The firm has a market cap of $110.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.43.

Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The aerospace company reported $7.67 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.58 by $1.09. Lockheed Martin had a net margin of 7.51% and a return on equity of 101.47%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Lockheed Martin Co. will post 27.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lockheed Martin Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a dividend of $3.30 per share. This represents a $13.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.82%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. Lockheed Martin’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 59.30%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Harry Edward Paul III sold 707 shares of Lockheed Martin stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $442.61, for a total transaction of $312,925.27. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,278 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,008,265.58. The trade was a 23.69 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Robert M. Lightfoot, Jr. sold 3,213 shares of the business’s 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 directly owns 2,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $884,840. The trade was a 61.63 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 7,133 shares of company stock worth $3,155,916. Corporate insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lockheed Martin

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vinva Investment Management Ltd boosted its stake in Lockheed Martin by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. Vinva Investment Management Ltd now owns 656 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $382,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the last quarter. Widmann Financial Services Inc. boosted its stake in Lockheed Martin by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. Widmann Financial Services Inc. now owns 968 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $566,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. CFS Investment Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in Lockheed Martin by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. CFS Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,091 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $530,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Lockheed Martin by 4.5% during the 3rd quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 515 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $301,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wynn Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of Lockheed Martin by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Wynn Capital LLC now owns 2,185 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,062,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.19% of the company’s stock.

About Lockheed Martin

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.