Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) Trading Down 0.5% – Time to Sell?

Shares of Lockheed Martin Co. (NYSE:LMT) fell 0.5% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $485.32 and last traded at $488.14. 218,706 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 80% from the average session volume of 1,082,870 shares. The stock had previously closed at $490.61.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LMT has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Melius raised Lockheed Martin from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $704.00 target price on the stock in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised 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. Barclays lifted their price objective on Lockheed Martin from $505.00 to $565.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on shares of Lockheed Martin from $600.00 to $620.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Lockheed Martin from $602.00 to $543.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Lockheed Martin currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $612.29.

Lockheed Martin Trading Down 0.7 %

The firm 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 simple moving average of $543.35 and a 200-day simple 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 announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The aerospace company reported $6.84 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $17.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.38 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $6.77 earnings per share. Lockheed Martin’s quarterly revenue was up 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Lockheed Martin Co. will post 26.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lockheed Martin Increases Dividend

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lockheed Martin

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Lockheed Martin by 1.8% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,827,645 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $2,816,898,000 after buying an additional 83,997 shares during the period. FMR LLC boosted its stake in shares of Lockheed Martin by 6.6% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,389,025 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,981,088,000 after purchasing an additional 209,591 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in Lockheed Martin by 8.5% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,074,855 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,797,437,000 after purchasing an additional 240,306 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its holdings in Lockheed Martin by 1.7% during the 2nd 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. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its position in Lockheed Martin by 60,592.0% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,559,178 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $911,433,000 after purchasing an additional 1,556,609 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 74.19% of the company’s stock.

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.