Lockheed Martin Co. (NYSE:LMT) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Lockheed Martin Co. (NYSE:LMT) have earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the fourteen analysts that are covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, four have assigned a hold recommendation, eight have given a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $612.29.

Several analysts have commented on the company. Susquehanna dropped their price objective on Lockheed Martin from $705.00 to $695.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Lockheed Martin from $519.00 to $626.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada decreased 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. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Lockheed Martin from $505.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on Lockheed Martin from $570.00 to $700.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th.

Lockheed Martin Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of LMT stock opened at $479.66 on Friday. Lockheed Martin has a twelve month low of $413.92 and a twelve month high of $618.95. The stock has a market cap of $113.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.37, a P/E/G ratio of 4.13 and a beta of 0.46. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $543.35 and a 200 day moving average of $532.64. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.66.

Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The aerospace company reported $6.84 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.50 by $0.34. Lockheed Martin had a net margin of 9.36% and a return on equity of 101.44%. The firm had revenue of $17.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.38 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $6.77 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Lockheed Martin will post 26.88 EPS for the current year.

Lockheed Martin Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 27th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be given a dividend of $3.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. This is a boost from Lockheed Martin’s previous quarterly dividend of $3.15. This represents a $13.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.75%. Lockheed Martin’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 47.79%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bank of Montreal Can raised its holdings in shares of Lockheed Martin by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 656,807 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $382,498,000 after buying an additional 13,253 shares during the period. Hilltop Holdings Inc. grew its position in Lockheed Martin by 79.9% in the 3rd quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc. now owns 12,068 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $7,054,000 after acquiring an additional 5,361 shares in the last quarter. Old West Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Lockheed Martin by 6.6% during the third quarter. Old West Investment Management LLC now owns 26,633 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $15,569,000 after purchasing an additional 1,643 shares during the period. World Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Lockheed Martin by 55.1% during the third quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 6,468 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $3,781,000 after purchasing an additional 2,297 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Empower Advisory Group LLC increased its stake in Lockheed Martin by 9.1% during the 3rd quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC now owns 22,016 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $12,870,000 after buying an additional 1,843 shares during the period. 74.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.