Lockheed Martin Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NYSE:LMT)

Lockheed Martin Co. (NYSE:LMT) was the recipient of unusually large options trading activity on Friday. Traders purchased 18,520 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 147% compared to the typical volume of 7,499 call options.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on LMT shares. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Lockheed Martin from $483.00 to $525.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Lockheed Martin from $511.00 to $538.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Lockheed Martin from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $540.00 to $600.00 in a research report on Friday, July 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Lockheed Martin from $518.00 to $560.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, Susquehanna upped their price objective on shares of Lockheed Martin from $540.00 to $565.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $541.85.

Insider Transactions at Lockheed Martin

In other news, insider Timothy S. Cahill sold 3,975 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $515.36, for a total value of $2,048,556.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 8,877 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,574,850.72. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lockheed Martin

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of LMT. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in Lockheed Martin by 14.9% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,589,447 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,173,641,000 after purchasing an additional 336,588 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its position in Lockheed Martin by 1.7% during the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 1,942,658 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $902,714,000 after purchasing an additional 31,545 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its position in Lockheed Martin by 14.9% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 1,384,774 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $646,828,000 after purchasing an additional 180,074 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in Lockheed Martin by 11.3% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,169,223 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $546,144,000 after purchasing an additional 119,052 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wulff Hansen & CO. lifted its position in Lockheed Martin by 56,626.7% during the second quarter. Wulff Hansen & CO. now owns 1,021,081 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $476,947,000 after purchasing an additional 1,019,281 shares during the last quarter. 74.19% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Lockheed Martin Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of Lockheed Martin stock opened at $568.10 on Friday. Lockheed Martin has a 12-month low of $393.77 and a 12-month high of $569.09. The company has a market cap of $136.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.79, a PEG ratio of 4.40 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.10. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $514.24 and its 200-day moving average price is $473.51.

Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The aerospace company reported $7.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.45 by $0.66. Lockheed Martin had a net margin of 9.48% and a return on equity of 95.03%. The firm had revenue of $18.12 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.05 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $6.73 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Lockheed Martin will post 26.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lockheed Martin Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 27th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd will be issued a $3.15 dividend. This represents a $12.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.22%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 3rd. Lockheed Martin’s payout ratio is 46.10%.

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.