Lockheed Martin Co. (NYSE:LMT) Shares Sold by Franklin Resources Inc.

Franklin Resources Inc. lessened its holdings in Lockheed Martin Co. (NYSE:LMT - Free Report) by 17.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,717,643 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 367,608 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned 0.73% of Lockheed Martin worth $834,671,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in LMT. Freedom Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Lockheed Martin by 16.7% in the 3rd quarter. Freedom Investment Management Inc. now owns 754 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $441,000 after buying an additional 108 shares during the last quarter. Vinva Investment Management Ltd lifted its position in Lockheed Martin by 3.0% during the third quarter. Vinva Investment Management Ltd now owns 656 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $382,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the last quarter. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Lockheed Martin during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,840,000. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec raised its position in Lockheed Martin by 139.4% in the 3rd 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 period. Finally, Edgestream Partners L.P. boosted its holdings in Lockheed Martin by 15.7% during the 3rd quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 3,667 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $2,144,000 after acquiring an additional 497 shares during the period. 74.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on LMT shares. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an "equal weight" rating on shares of Lockheed Martin in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Melius lowered shares of Lockheed Martin from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, March 24th. Royal Bank of Canada cut shares of Lockheed Martin from an "outperform" rating to a "sector perform" rating and cut their target price for the stock from $550.00 to $480.00 in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target 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. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Lockheed Martin from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $539.53.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Harry Edward Paul III sold 707 shares of Lockheed Martin stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $442.61, for a total value of $312,925.27. Following the sale, the vice president now directly 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Robert M. Lightfoot, Jr. sold 3,213 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the insider now owns 2,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $884,840. The trade was a 61.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 7,133 shares of company stock valued at $3,155,916. Company insiders own 0.17% of the company's stock.

Lockheed Martin Price Performance

LMT stock traded up $4.28 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $452.92. 1,268,442 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,210,025. The stock has a market capitalization of $106.61 billion, a PE ratio of 20.35, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.43. Lockheed Martin Co. has a 52 week low of $419.70 and a 52 week high of $618.95. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $454.45 and a 200 day moving average price of $508.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.10, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 0.95.

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

Lockheed Martin Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a $3.30 dividend. This represents a $13.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. Lockheed Martin's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 59.30%.

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.