Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) Trading Down 0.7% – Should You Sell?

Shares of Lockheed Martin Co. (NYSE:LMT) fell 0.7% on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $446.42 and last traded at $446.51. 232,619 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 83% from the average session volume of 1,376,470 shares. The stock had previously closed at $449.87.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently weighed in on LMT. Barclays lowered their price objective on Lockheed Martin from $565.00 to $515.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded Lockheed Martin from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $611.00 to $523.00 in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Lockheed Martin from $540.00 to $535.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on Lockheed Martin from $519.00 to $626.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Citigroup reduced their target price on Lockheed Martin from $700.00 to $600.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Lockheed Martin currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $555.60.

Lockheed Martin Stock Down 0.4 %

The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $488.10 and its 200 day simple moving average is $536.42. The company has a market cap of $105.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.13, a PEG ratio of 2.96 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.10, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 1.13.

Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) last issued its earnings results 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%. On average, research analysts forecast that Lockheed Martin Co. will post 27.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lockheed Martin Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a $3.30 dividend. This represents a $13.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.95%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. Lockheed Martin’s dividend payout ratio is currently 59.30%.

Institutional Trading of Lockheed Martin

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Westover Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Lockheed Martin by 4.6% in the 4th quarter. Westover Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,019 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $495,000 after buying an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Torray Investment Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Lockheed Martin by 30.2% in the 4th quarter. Torray Investment Partners LLC now owns 8,028 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $3,901,000 after buying an additional 1,860 shares in the last quarter. Kapstone Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Lockheed Martin by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Kapstone Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,441 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $655,000 after buying an additional 28 shares in the last quarter. Patten Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Lockheed Martin by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Patten Group Inc. now owns 2,642 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,284,000 after buying an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Alta Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Lockheed Martin by 44.8% during the 4th quarter. Alta Capital Management LLC now owns 7,088 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $3,445,000 after purchasing an additional 2,194 shares in the last quarter. 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.