Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) Shares Gap Up - Still a Buy?

Lockheed Martin Co. (NYSE:LMT - Get Free Report) gapped up prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $449.18, but opened at $458.97. Lockheed Martin shares last traded at $461.38, with a volume of 240,221 shares.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LMT has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Lockheed Martin from $476.00 to $432.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of Lockheed Martin from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $540.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada lowered shares of Lockheed Martin from an "outperform" rating to a "sector perform" rating and reduced their target price for the company from $550.00 to $480.00 in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Melius lowered shares of Lockheed Martin from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, March 24th. Finally, Melius Research lowered shares of Lockheed Martin from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, March 24th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lockheed Martin presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $541.80.

Lockheed Martin Trading Up 2.0%

The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $461.53 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $481.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.10, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 0.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $107.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.29.

Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The aerospace company reported $7.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $6.34 by $0.94. Lockheed Martin had a net margin of 7.51% and a return on equity of 101.47%. The firm had revenue of $17.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.83 billion. Equities research analysts expect that Lockheed Martin Co. will post 27.15 EPS for the current year.

Lockheed Martin Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared 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 yield of 2.88%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 2nd. Lockheed Martin's payout ratio is 57.02%.

Insider Activity at Lockheed Martin

In other news, VP Harry Edward Paul III sold 707 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 sale, the vice president now owns 2,278 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,008,265.58. This represents a 23.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Robert M. Lightfoot, Jr. sold 3,213 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of 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 position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 7,133 shares of company stock valued at $3,155,916 over the last 90 days. 0.14% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. TruNorth Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Lockheed Martin during the first quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Lockheed Martin during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Lockheed Martin during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Heck Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Lockheed Martin during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Redwood Park Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Lockheed Martin in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Hedge funds and other 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.

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