Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) Trading Down 1.2% - Should You Sell?

Lockheed Martin Co. (NYSE:LMT - Get Free Report)'s stock price fell 1.2% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $481.85 and last traded at $482.86. 163,919 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 85% from the average session volume of 1,090,599 shares. The stock had previously closed at $488.97.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on LMT. Melius Research raised shares of Lockheed Martin to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Lockheed Martin from $560.00 to $610.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of Lockheed Martin from $519.00 to $626.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Lockheed Martin from $560.00 to $630.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Melius raised Lockheed Martin from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $704.00 target price for the company in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Lockheed Martin has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $612.29.

Lockheed Martin Stock Performance

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 cap of $114.58 billion, a PE ratio of 17.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.05 and a beta of 0.46. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $526.23 and a 200 day moving average price of $534.69.

Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The aerospace company reported $6.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.50 by $0.34. Lockheed Martin had a return on equity of 101.44% and a net margin of 9.36%. The company had revenue of $17.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $17.38 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $6.77 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Lockheed Martin Co. will post 26.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lockheed Martin Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 27th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were paid a $3.30 dividend. This represents a $13.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.73%. This is an increase from Lockheed Martin's previous quarterly dividend of $3.15. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 2nd. Lockheed Martin's payout ratio is 47.79%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lockheed Martin

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new position in Lockheed Martin in the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. Mattson Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in Lockheed Martin during the 2nd quarter worth about $27,000. Sachetta LLC raised its position in Lockheed Martin by 50.0% in the 2nd 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. Burkett Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lockheed Martin in the 3rd quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Lockheed Martin during the third quarter worth approximately $40,000. 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.