Lockheed Martin Co. (NYSE:LMT) is Welch Group LLC’s 9th Largest Position

Welch Group LLC reduced its stake in shares of Lockheed Martin Co. (NYSE:LMT) by 0.2% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 116,542 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 222 shares during the period. Lockheed Martin comprises 3.0% of Welch Group LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 9th biggest position. Welch Group LLC’s holdings in Lockheed Martin were worth $68,126,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its position in shares of Lockheed Martin by 1.7% in the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 1,942,658 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $902,714,000 after purchasing an additional 31,545 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Lockheed Martin by 60,592.0% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,559,178 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $911,433,000 after buying an additional 1,556,609 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its position in shares of Lockheed Martin by 14.9% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 1,384,774 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $646,828,000 after acquiring an additional 180,074 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Lockheed Martin by 11.3% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,169,223 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $546,144,000 after acquiring an additional 119,052 shares during the period. Finally, Wulff Hansen & CO. boosted its stake in shares of Lockheed Martin by 56,626.7% in the second quarter. Wulff Hansen & CO. now owns 1,021,081 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $476,947,000 after acquiring an additional 1,019,281 shares during the period. 74.19% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Lockheed Martin Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE LMT traded down $2.39 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $559.90. 159,493 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,050,708. The stock has a market capitalization of $133.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.62 and a beta of 0.47. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $580.07 and its 200 day moving average price is $515.53. Lockheed Martin Co. has a 12 month low of $413.92 and a 12 month high of $618.95. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.66.

Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The aerospace company reported $6.84 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.50 by $0.34. The business had revenue of $17.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.38 billion. Lockheed Martin had a net margin of 9.36% and a return on equity of 101.44%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $6.77 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Lockheed Martin Co. will post 26.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lockheed Martin Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 27th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be paid a dividend of $3.30 per share. This is a boost from Lockheed Martin’s previous quarterly dividend of $3.15. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $13.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.36%. Lockheed Martin’s dividend payout ratio is currently 45.62%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on LMT shares. TD Cowen lifted their target price on Lockheed Martin from $560.00 to $610.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Lockheed Martin from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Melius raised shares of Lockheed Martin from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $704.00 target price for the company in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Lockheed Martin from $589.00 to $603.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Bank of America restated a “buy” rating and set a $635.00 price objective on shares of Lockheed Martin in a research report on Friday, August 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $606.71.

Lockheed Martin 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.