Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) Upgraded at BNP Paribas

BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) to a strong-buy rating in a research report report published on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other brokerages also recently issued reports on LMT. Wall Street Zen upgraded Lockheed Martin from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, October 25th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price objective on Lockheed Martin from $497.00 to $545.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 20th. Truist Financial lifted their target price on Lockheed Martin from $440.00 to $500.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on shares of Lockheed Martin from $440.00 to $525.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 7th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $519.00 price target on shares of Lockheed Martin and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Lockheed Martin currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $513.47.

Lockheed Martin Trading Down 0.4%

NYSE:LMT opened at $468.19 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $484.90 and a 200-day simple moving average of $466.96. Lockheed Martin has a one year low of $410.11 and a one year high of $546.00. The firm has a market cap of $108.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.14, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.32, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.13.

Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 21st. The aerospace company reported $6.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.33 by $0.62. The firm had revenue of $18.61 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.45 billion. Lockheed Martin had a net margin of 5.73% and a return on equity of 111.84%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $6.84 earnings per share. Lockheed Martin has set its FY 2025 guidance at 22.150-22.350 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Lockheed Martin will post 27.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lockheed Martin Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 1st will be paid a dividend of $3.45 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 1st. This is a positive change from Lockheed Martin’s previous quarterly dividend of $3.30. This represents a $13.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. Lockheed Martin’s payout ratio is presently 77.05%.

Insider Activity

In related news, COO John Frank A. St sold 7,792 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $491.04, for a total value of $3,826,183.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 1 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $491.04. This trade represents a 99.99% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.14% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Tableaux LLC grew its holdings in shares of Lockheed Martin by 34,231.4% during the second quarter. Tableaux LLC now owns 623,115 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $288,589,000 after buying an additional 621,300 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Lockheed Martin by 7.5% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 8,031,528 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $3,587,444,000 after acquiring an additional 560,457 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in Lockheed Martin during the 1st quarter valued at about $221,790,000. Sanders Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Lockheed Martin during the 3rd quarter valued at about $252,699,000. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Lockheed Martin by 286.1% in the third quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 503,428 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $251,316,000 after purchasing an additional 373,027 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.19% of the company’s stock.

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.