Empire Financial Management Company LLC Sells 5,745 Shares of Lockheed Martin Co. (NYSE:LMT)

Empire Financial Management Company LLC lowered its stake in Lockheed Martin Co. (NYSE:LMT - Free Report) by 75.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,848 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 5,745 shares during the quarter. Empire Financial Management Company LLC's holdings in Lockheed Martin were worth $898,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Proficio Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in Lockheed Martin by 53,784.3% during the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,235,568 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $600,412,000 after purchasing an additional 1,233,275 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Lockheed Martin by 17.9% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 7,471,071 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $3,630,492,000 after buying an additional 1,132,461 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its position in shares of Lockheed Martin by 1,239.6% during the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 548,237 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $266,410,000 after buying an additional 507,312 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors bought a new stake in shares of Lockheed Martin in the fourth quarter worth $229,987,000. Finally, Demars Financial Group LLC increased its position in shares of Lockheed Martin by 47,002.5% in the 4th quarter. Demars Financial Group LLC now owns 433,343 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $210,579,000 after purchasing an additional 432,423 shares during the last quarter. 74.19% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Lockheed Martin Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:LMT traded up $11.01 on Friday, reaching $477.82. 1,521,067 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,251,287. The stock has a market capitalization of $112.08 billion, a PE ratio of 21.47, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.10, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 0.95. The company's 50 day moving average is $455.79 and its 200-day moving average is $492.43. Lockheed Martin Co. has a fifty-two week low of $418.88 and a fifty-two week high of $618.95.

Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The aerospace company reported $7.28 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.34 by $0.94. Lockheed Martin had a return on equity of 101.47% and a net margin of 7.51%. The business had revenue of $17.96 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.83 billion. As a group, analysts anticipate that Lockheed Martin Co. will post 27.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lockheed Martin Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a $3.30 dividend. This represents a $13.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.76%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. Lockheed Martin's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 57.02%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Robert M. Lightfoot, Jr. sold 3,213 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the insider now owns 2,000 shares in the company, valued at $884,840. This represents a 61.63 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, VP Harry Edward Paul III sold 707 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,008,265.58. This represents a 23.69 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 7,133 shares of company stock worth $3,155,916 over the last 90 days. 0.14% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Lockheed Martin from $476.00 to $432.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Susquehanna reduced their price target on shares of Lockheed Martin from $590.00 to $550.00 and set a "positive" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Melius downgraded shares of Lockheed Martin from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, March 24th. Bank of America cut shares of Lockheed Martin from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and cut their target price for the stock from $685.00 to $485.00 in a report on Monday, March 24th. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on Lockheed Martin from $481.00 to $499.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Lockheed Martin presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $544.79.

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.