StockNews.com Upgrades Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) to “Strong-Buy”

Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) was upgraded by research analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday.

Several other analysts have also recently issued reports on LMT. Susquehanna lowered their target price on shares of Lockheed Martin from $550.00 to $540.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Lockheed Martin from $513.00 to $503.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on shares of Lockheed Martin from $467.00 to $487.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on shares of Lockheed Martin from $380.00 to $377.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Lockheed Martin from $508.00 to $525.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $485.40.

Lockheed Martin Stock Performance

Shares of LMT stock traded up $6.05 during trading on Thursday, reaching $465.19. 927,138 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,171,864. Lockheed Martin has a 1 year low of $393.77 and a 1 year high of $479.50. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.89. The company has a market capitalization of $111.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.02, a PEG ratio of 4.21 and a beta of 0.48. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $443.00 and its 200 day moving average is $444.29.

Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The aerospace company reported $6.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.80 by $0.53. Lockheed Martin had a net margin of 9.73% and a return on equity of 85.96%. The business had revenue of $17.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.04 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $6.43 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Lockheed Martin will post 26.04 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Lockheed Martin

In related news, SVP Maryanne Lavan sold 4,022 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $434.39, for a total transaction of $1,747,116.58. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Lockheed Martin news, COO John Frank A. St sold 6,648 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $425.35, for a total transaction of $2,827,726.80. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Maryanne Lavan sold 4,022 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $434.39, for a total transaction of $1,747,116.58. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 16,874 shares of company stock valued at $7,249,946. Insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lockheed Martin

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LMT. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Lockheed Martin by 10,526.6% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,362,228 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $617,416,000 after purchasing an additional 1,349,409 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in shares of Lockheed Martin by 14.9% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,589,447 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,173,641,000 after purchasing an additional 336,588 shares during the period. Confluence Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lockheed Martin in the 1st quarter worth about $151,402,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Lockheed Martin by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 22,302,719 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $9,120,920,000 after purchasing an additional 279,162 shares during the period. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of Lockheed Martin by 91.8% in the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 574,017 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $260,169,000 after purchasing an additional 274,680 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.19% of the company’s stock.

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.