Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) Trading Down 0.8% – Here’s Why

Shares of Lockheed Martin Co. (NYSE:LMT) fell 0.8% on Thursday . The company traded as low as $453.41 and last traded at $456.57. 437,028 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 60% from the average session volume of 1,104,429 shares. The stock had previously closed at $460.42.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Truist Financial began coverage on shares of Lockheed Martin in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $579.00 target price for the company. StockNews.com lowered Lockheed Martin from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup cut their price objective on Lockheed Martin from $700.00 to $600.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Lockheed Martin from $555.00 to $525.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Lockheed Martin from $497.00 to $468.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $553.67.

Lockheed Martin Stock Performance

The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $463.76 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $522.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.10, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 1.13. The stock has a market capitalization of $108.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.75, a PEG ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.43.

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

Lockheed Martin Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a dividend of $3.30 per share. This represents a $13.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.86%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. Lockheed Martin’s dividend payout ratio is 59.30%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Lockheed Martin news, insider Robert M. Lightfoot, Jr. sold 3,213 shares of Lockheed Martin stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $442.42, for a total value of $1,421,495.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 2,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $884,840. The trade was a 61.63 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Harry Edward Paul III sold 707 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $442.61, for a total value of $312,925.27. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 2,278 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,008,265.58. The trade was a 23.69 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 7,133 shares of company stock worth $3,155,916 in the last quarter. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new position in Lockheed Martin in the third quarter valued at about $26,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lockheed Martin in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Lockheed Martin in the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Heck Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Lockheed Martin during the fourth quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in Lockheed Martin during the third quarter worth $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.