Lockheed Martin Co. (NYSE:LMT) Receives $541.80 Average Target Price from Brokerages

Lockheed Martin Co. (NYSE:LMT - Get Free Report) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the seventeen analysts that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $541.80.

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Robert W. Baird raised shares of Lockheed Martin from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $540.00 target price for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Melius Research downgraded shares of Lockheed Martin from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, March 24th. Melius downgraded shares of Lockheed Martin from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, March 24th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Lockheed Martin from $476.00 to $432.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Bank of America cut Lockheed Martin from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and reduced their target price for the company from $685.00 to $485.00 in a research note on Monday, March 24th.

Lockheed Martin Price Performance

Shares of NYSE LMT traded up $2.40 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $467.54. 1,316,927 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,284,483. The company has a market cap of $109.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.00, a PEG ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.29. Lockheed Martin has a 1 year low of $418.88 and a 1 year high of $618.95. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $461.25 and its 200 day moving average price is $480.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.10, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 0.95.

Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The aerospace company reported $7.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.34 by $0.94. Lockheed Martin had a net margin of 7.51% and a return on equity of 101.47%. The company had revenue of $17.96 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.83 billion. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Lockheed Martin will post 27.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lockheed Martin Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 27th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd will be paid a dividend of $3.30 per share. This represents a $13.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.82%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 2nd. Lockheed Martin's dividend payout ratio is currently 57.02%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Lockheed Martin news, insider Robert M. Lightfoot, Jr. sold 3,213 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $442.42, for a total transaction of $1,421,495.46. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 2,000 shares in the company, valued at $884,840. This trade represents a 61.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Harry Edward Paul III sold 707 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $442.61, for a total value of $312,925.27. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 2,278 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,008,265.58. This trade represents a 23.69% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 7,133 shares of company stock worth $3,155,916. 0.14% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lockheed Martin

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund boosted its position in shares of Lockheed Martin by 51.7% in the fourth quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund now owns 9,528 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $4,630,000 after acquiring an additional 3,247 shares during the period. Brady Martz Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new position in Lockheed Martin in the fourth quarter worth $1,266,000. Aquatic Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Lockheed Martin in the fourth quarter worth $33,294,000. Private Advisor Group LLC lifted its position in Lockheed Martin by 11.0% in the fourth quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 51,253 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $24,906,000 after purchasing an additional 5,075 shares during the period. Finally, Confluence Wealth Services Inc. lifted its position in Lockheed Martin by 174.0% in the fourth quarter. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. now owns 3,176 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $1,579,000 after purchasing an additional 2,017 shares during the period. 74.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.