California Public Employees Retirement System Sells 9,810 Shares of Lockheed Martin Co. (NYSE:LMT)

California Public Employees Retirement System trimmed its stake in Lockheed Martin Co. (NYSE:LMT) by 1.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 790,493 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 9,810 shares during the quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System owned 0.34% of Lockheed Martin worth $384,132,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of LMT. Freedom Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Lockheed Martin by 16.7% in the third quarter. Freedom Investment Management Inc. now owns 754 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $441,000 after buying an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. Vinva Investment Management Ltd lifted its position in Lockheed Martin by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter. Vinva Investment Management Ltd now owns 656 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $382,000 after acquiring an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. boosted its stake in Lockheed Martin by 13.8% during the 3rd quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 122,989 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $71,890,000 after purchasing an additional 14,901 shares during the last quarter. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Lockheed Martin in the 3rd quarter worth $1,840,000. Finally, Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec raised its stake in shares of Lockheed Martin by 139.4% in the third quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 80,554 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $47,089,000 after purchasing an additional 46,900 shares during the last quarter. 74.19% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on LMT shares. StockNews.com raised Lockheed Martin from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 24th. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an “equal weight” rating on shares of Lockheed Martin in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Lockheed Martin from $555.00 to $525.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Citigroup cut their target price on shares of Lockheed Martin from $700.00 to $600.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Lockheed Martin from $540.00 to $535.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $539.53.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Lockheed Martin Stock Performance

Shares of LMT opened at $441.41 on Friday. Lockheed Martin Co. has a 52 week low of $419.70 and a 52 week high of $618.95. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.10. The stock has a market cap of $103.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.83, a PEG ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.43. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $456.49 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $510.30.

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

Lockheed Martin Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a dividend of $3.30 per share. This represents a $13.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.99%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. Lockheed Martin’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 59.30%.

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.