Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) Shares Up 0.3% Following Analyst Upgrade

Lockheed Martin Co. (NYSE:LMT) shares rose 0.3% during mid-day trading on Friday after Susquehanna raised their price target on the stock from $565.00 to $705.00. Susquehanna currently has a positive rating on the stock. Lockheed Martin traded as high as $611.60 and last traded at $611.60. Approximately 145,897 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 86% from the average daily volume of 1,043,519 shares. The stock had previously closed at $609.62.

A number of other analysts have also issued reports on LMT. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Lockheed Martin to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on shares of Lockheed Martin from $600.00 to $620.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Lockheed Martin from $511.00 to $538.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Lockheed Martin from $560.00 to $630.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Lockheed Martin from $600.00 to $675.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Lockheed Martin has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $597.92.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Timothy S. Cahill sold 3,975 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the insider now directly owns 8,877 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,574,850.72. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lockheed Martin

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Lockheed Martin by 5.6% in the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 6,853 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $3,106,000 after acquiring an additional 364 shares in the last quarter. Stokes Family Office LLC acquired a new stake in Lockheed Martin in the 1st quarter worth approximately $425,000. Alaska Permanent Fund Corp purchased a new stake in Lockheed Martin during the 1st quarter worth approximately $217,000. RFG Advisory LLC increased its stake in Lockheed Martin by 18.4% during the 1st quarter. RFG Advisory LLC now owns 5,522 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $2,512,000 after purchasing an additional 859 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Meyer Handelman Co. raised its holdings in shares of Lockheed Martin by 19.7% in the first quarter. Meyer Handelman Co. now owns 4,649 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $2,115,000 after buying an additional 764 shares during the last quarter. 74.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lockheed Martin Stock Up 0.4 %

The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.10. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $578.29 and its 200 day moving average price is $510.27. The firm has a market capitalization of $146.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.38, a P/E/G ratio of 4.84 and a beta of 0.47.

Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The aerospace company reported $7.11 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.45 by $0.66. The company had revenue of $18.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.05 billion. Lockheed Martin had a return on equity of 95.03% and a net margin of 9.48%. The firm’s revenue was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $6.73 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Lockheed Martin Co. will post 26.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lockheed Martin Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 27th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be paid a dividend of $3.30 per share. This represents a $13.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.16%. This is a boost from Lockheed Martin’s previous quarterly dividend of $3.15. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. Lockheed Martin’s payout ratio is presently 48.30%.

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.