Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) Trading Up 2.2% – What’s Next?

Lockheed Martin Co. (NYSE:LMT) was up 2.2% during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $448.65 and last traded at $450.10. Approximately 302,724 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 80% from the average daily volume of 1,543,915 shares. The stock had previously closed at $440.27.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Lockheed Martin from $527.00 to $508.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut Lockheed Martin from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $611.00 to $523.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. Barclays dropped their price target on Lockheed Martin from $565.00 to $515.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. StockNews.com cut shares of Lockheed Martin from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Lockheed Martin from $500.00 to $497.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Lockheed Martin currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $555.60.

Lockheed Martin Stock Performance

The firm’s 50 day moving average is $468.90 and its 200-day moving average is $527.96. The stock has a market capitalization of $105.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.16, a PEG ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.10, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 1.13.

Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The aerospace company reported $7.67 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.58 by $1.09. Lockheed Martin had a return on equity of 101.47% and a net margin of 7.51%. Analysts forecast that Lockheed Martin Co. will post 27.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lockheed Martin Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a dividend of $3.30 per share. This represents a $13.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. Lockheed Martin’s payout ratio is 59.30%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new position in Lockheed Martin in the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lockheed Martin during the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Lockheed Martin in the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lockheed Martin in the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in Lockheed Martin during the third quarter worth about $40,000. 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.