Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) Stock Price Up 4.2% After Analyst Upgrade

Lockheed Martin Co. (NYSE:LMT)’s stock price traded up 4.2% on Monday after Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on the stock from $468.00 to $476.00. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an equal weight rating on the stock. Lockheed Martin traded as high as $493.91 and last traded at $493.39. 700,499 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 37% from the average session volume of 1,112,950 shares. The stock had previously closed at $473.65.

A number of other equities analysts have also commented on LMT. Truist Financial assumed coverage on Lockheed Martin in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $579.00 price objective on the stock. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Lockheed Martin from $555.00 to $525.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Lockheed Martin from $540.00 to $535.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Citigroup cut their target price on Lockheed Martin from $700.00 to $600.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Lockheed Martin from $565.00 to $515.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. 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 given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Lockheed Martin presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $554.20.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Robert M. Lightfoot, Jr. sold 3,213 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $442.42, for a total value of $1,421,495.46. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 2,000 shares in the company, valued at $884,840. This represents a 61.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Harry Edward Paul III sold 707 shares of the firm’s 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 in the company, valued at approximately $1,008,265.58. The trade was a 23.69 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 7,133 shares of company stock valued at $3,155,916. Company insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Lockheed Martin

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new stake in shares of Lockheed Martin in the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new position in Lockheed Martin in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in shares of Lockheed Martin in the third quarter worth about $40,000. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Lockheed Martin during the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Heck Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Lockheed Martin during the 4th quarter worth about $35,000. 74.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lockheed Martin Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.10. The stock has a market cap of $116.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.17, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $462.89 and a 200-day simple moving average of $521.36.

Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The aerospace company reported $7.67 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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%. Research analysts expect that Lockheed Martin Co. will post 27.15 EPS for the current year.

Lockheed Martin Dividend Announcement

The firm 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.68%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. Lockheed Martin’s payout ratio is presently 59.30%.

Lockheed Martin Company Profile

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.