Lockheed Martin Corporation (NYSE:LMT) Sees Significant Drop in Short Interest

Key Points

• Short interest fell 14.6% to 2,367,943 shares as of March 31, leaving a days-to-cover ratio of about 1.4 and roughly 1.0% of the company's stock sold short.
• Lockheed Martin missed EPS expectations, reporting $5.80 vs. $6.33 consensus while revenue rose 9.1% to $20.32 billion; the stock traded down to $591.57 on the latest session.
• The company pays a quarterly dividend of $3.45 (annualized $13.80, 2.3% yield) and carries a MarketBeat consensus rating of "Hold" with a $645.79 average price target amid mixed analyst views.

Lockheed Martin Corporation (NYSE:LMT - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant decrease in short interest in March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totaling 2,367,943 shares, a decrease of 14.6% from the March 15th total of 2,772,317 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,733,675 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.4 days. Currently, 1.0% of the company's stock are sold short.

Lockheed Martin Stock Performance

LMT traded down $15.93 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $591.57. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,696,487 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,737,776. Lockheed Martin has a fifty-two week low of $410.11 and a fifty-two week high of $692.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $136.33 billion, a PE ratio of 27.53, a PEG ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 0.23. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $637.67 and a 200 day simple moving average of $550.59.

Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The aerospace company reported $5.80 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $6.33 by ($0.53). Lockheed Martin had a net margin of 6.69% and a return on equity of 108.53%. The business had revenue of $20.32 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $19.84 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $7.67 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Lockheed Martin will post 27.15 EPS for the current year.

Lockheed Martin Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 27th. Investors of record on Monday, March 2nd were given a $3.45 dividend. This represents a $13.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 2nd. Lockheed Martin's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 64.22%.

Institutional Trading of Lockheed Martin

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Cerro Pacific Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Lockheed Martin by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Cerro Pacific Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,376 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $665,000 after purchasing an additional 16 shares in the last quarter. Garner Asset Management Corp boosted its stake in Lockheed Martin by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Garner Asset Management Corp now owns 1,735 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $839,000 after purchasing an additional 16 shares in the last quarter. Davis R M Inc. boosted its stake in Lockheed Martin by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Davis R M Inc. now owns 1,264 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $612,000 after purchasing an additional 16 shares in the last quarter. Broadway Wealth Solutions Inc. boosted its stake in Lockheed Martin by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Broadway Wealth Solutions Inc. now owns 484 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $234,000 after purchasing an additional 17 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Aspire Growth Partners LLC boosted its stake in Lockheed Martin by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Aspire Growth Partners LLC now owns 2,515 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $1,217,000 after purchasing an additional 17 shares in the last quarter. 74.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on LMT shares. Wall Street Zen cut Lockheed Martin from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Sunday, March 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Lockheed Martin from $515.00 to $680.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley set a $675.00 price target on Lockheed Martin in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Lockheed Martin from $630.00 to $640.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane increased their price target on Lockheed Martin from $740.00 to $770.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Lockheed Martin presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $645.79.

Lockheed Martin Company Profile

Lockheed Martin Corporation NYSE: LMT is a global aerospace and defense company that designs, develops and manufactures advanced technology systems for government and commercial customers. Formed through the 1995 merger of Lockheed Corporation and Martin Marietta, the company is headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, and focuses on providing integrated solutions across air, space, land and sea domains. Its primary customers include the U.S. Department of Defense, NASA and allied governments around the world.

Lockheed Martin's product and service portfolio spans military aircraft, missile and fire-control systems, missile defense, space systems and satellite technologies, sensors and precision weapons.

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