Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) Stock Price Up 0.1% – Time to Buy?

Lockheed Martin Co. (NYSE:LMT) shares traded up 0.1% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $528.61 and last traded at $526.36. 155,997 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 85% from the average session volume of 1,073,237 shares. The stock had previously closed at $525.75.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Melius raised shares of Lockheed Martin from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $704.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd. StockNews.com lowered shares of Lockheed Martin from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Lockheed Martin from $560.00 to $630.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on Lockheed Martin from $675.00 to $665.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, TD Cowen increased their price objective on Lockheed Martin from $560.00 to $610.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $611.00.

Lockheed Martin Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $125.01 billion, a PE ratio of 19.06, a PEG ratio of 4.29 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a quick ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.66. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $569.60 and its 200-day simple moving average is $528.50.

Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) last posted 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 return on equity of 101.44% and a net margin of 9.36%. The firm had revenue of $17.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.38 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $6.77 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Lockheed Martin Co. will post 26.94 earnings per share 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. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be paid a $3.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. This is a positive change from Lockheed Martin’s previous quarterly dividend of $3.15. This represents a $13.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.50%. Lockheed Martin’s payout ratio is currently 45.62%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lockheed Martin

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its stake in shares of Lockheed Martin by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 656,807 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $382,498,000 after buying an additional 13,253 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Lockheed Martin by 130.0% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,572 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,668,000 after purchasing an additional 2,019 shares during the last quarter. Old West Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Lockheed Martin by 6.6% in the third quarter. Old West Investment Management LLC now owns 26,633 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $15,569,000 after purchasing an additional 1,643 shares during the last quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Lockheed Martin by 9.1% during the 3rd quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC now owns 22,016 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $12,870,000 after purchasing an additional 1,843 shares during the period. Finally, Buck Wealth Strategies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lockheed Martin during the 2nd quarter valued at about $6,611,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.