Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) Lifted to “Buy” at Melius

Melius upgraded shares of Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday, MarketBeat reports. They currently have $704.00 price objective on the aerospace company’s stock.

LMT has been the subject of several other research reports. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Lockheed Martin from $511.00 to $538.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Lockheed Martin from a hold rating to a buy rating and raised their price target for the company from $540.00 to $600.00 in a report on Friday, July 26th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Lockheed Martin from $483.00 to $525.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. TD Cowen raised shares of Lockheed Martin from a hold rating to a buy rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $480.00 to $560.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Lockheed Martin from $518.00 to $560.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lockheed Martin presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $553.43.

Lockheed Martin Stock Performance

NYSE LMT opened at $566.82 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $136.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.74, a PEG ratio of 4.56 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.10. Lockheed Martin has a 1-year low of $393.77 and a 1-year high of $578.73. The company has a 50 day moving average of $524.33 and a 200-day moving average of $478.58.

Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 23rd. The aerospace company reported $7.11 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.45 by $0.66. Lockheed Martin had a return on equity of 95.03% and a net margin of 9.48%. The company had revenue of $18.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.05 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $6.73 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Lockheed Martin will post 26.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lockheed Martin Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 27th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd will be given a $3.15 dividend. This represents a $12.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.22%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 3rd. Lockheed Martin’s payout ratio is presently 46.10%.

Insider Activity at Lockheed Martin

In other Lockheed Martin news, insider Timothy S. Cahill sold 3,975 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $515.36, for a total transaction of $2,048,556.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 8,877 shares in the company, valued at $4,574,850.72. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lockheed Martin

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. HTLF Bank increased its holdings in shares of Lockheed Martin by 3.7% during the second quarter. HTLF Bank now owns 565 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $264,000 after buying an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. tru Independence LLC boosted its stake in shares of Lockheed Martin by 2.5% during the second quarter. tru Independence LLC now owns 827 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $386,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Sachetta LLC boosted its stake in shares of Lockheed Martin by 50.0% during the second quarter. Sachetta LLC now owns 60 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Twin Lakes Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Lockheed Martin by 1.3% during the second quarter. Twin Lakes Capital Management LLC now owns 1,527 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $713,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Goldstein Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Lockheed Martin by 1.2% in the second quarter. Goldstein Advisors LLC now owns 1,731 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $809,000 after buying an additional 21 shares during the period. 74.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.