Advisors Asset Management Inc. Lowers Position in Lockheed Martin Co. (NYSE:LMT)

Advisors Asset Management Inc. lessened its stake in Lockheed Martin Co. (NYSE:LMT - Free Report) by 6.3% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 54,459 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 3,667 shares during the quarter. Lockheed Martin comprises 0.6% of Advisors Asset Management Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest position. Advisors Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Lockheed Martin were worth $31,835,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Mattson Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Lockheed Martin during the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Sachetta LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Lockheed Martin by 50.0% during the second quarter. Sachetta LLC now owns 60 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Wiser Advisor Group LLC increased its position in Lockheed Martin by 65.8% during the first quarter. Wiser Advisor Group LLC now owns 63 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC increased its position in Lockheed Martin by 48.9% during the second quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 67 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Burkett Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in Lockheed Martin in the third quarter worth about $32,000. 74.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LMT has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Citigroup increased their target price on Lockheed Martin from $570.00 to $700.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. StockNews.com downgraded Lockheed Martin from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Bank of America reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $635.00 price objective on shares of Lockheed Martin in a research report on Friday, August 30th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Lockheed Martin from $483.00 to $525.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, Melius Research upgraded Lockheed Martin to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Lockheed Martin currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $611.00.

Lockheed Martin Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE LMT traded up $1.63 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $534.89. The company's stock had a trading volume of 994,314 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,063,588. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $574.83 and a 200 day moving average price of $526.21. Lockheed Martin Co. has a one year low of $413.92 and a one year high of $618.95. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $126.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.19, a P/E/G ratio of 4.37 and a beta of 0.49.

Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The aerospace company reported $6.84 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $6.50 by $0.34. Lockheed Martin had a net margin of 9.36% and a return on equity of 101.44%. The company had revenue of $17.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.38 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $6.77 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Lockheed Martin Co. will post 26.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lockheed Martin Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 27th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be paid a dividend of $3.30 per share. This is a boost from Lockheed Martin's previous quarterly dividend of $3.15. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $13.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.47%. Lockheed Martin's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.62%.

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.