Lockheed Martin Co. (NYSE:LMT) Increases Dividend to $3.30 Per Share

Lockheed Martin Co. (NYSE:LMT - Get Free Report) declared a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, October 2nd, Zacks reports. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be paid a dividend of 3.30 per share by the aerospace company on Friday, December 27th. This represents a $13.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.18%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. This is a positive change from Lockheed Martin's previous quarterly dividend of $3.15.

Lockheed Martin has raised its dividend payment by an average of 7.4% annually over the last three years and has raised its dividend every year for the last 21 years. Lockheed Martin has a dividend payout ratio of 44.2% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect Lockheed Martin to earn $28.85 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $12.60 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 43.7%.

Lockheed Martin Stock Performance

Shares of Lockheed Martin stock traded down $0.69 on Friday, reaching $605.13. 559,681 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,065,046. Lockheed Martin has a 1-year low of $393.77 and a 1-year high of $611.49. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.10. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $564.10 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $498.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $145.19 billion, a PE ratio of 22.04, a PEG ratio of 4.66 and a beta of 0.47.

Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The aerospace company reported $7.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $6.45 by $0.66. Lockheed Martin had a net margin of 9.48% and a return on equity of 95.03%. The business had revenue of $18.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.05 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $6.73 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Lockheed Martin will post 26.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have weighed in on LMT. Melius Research upgraded shares of Lockheed Martin to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Lockheed Martin from $518.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Lockheed Martin from $480.00 to $505.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Lockheed Martin from $503.00 to $599.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, August 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Lockheed Martin from $483.00 to $525.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Lockheed Martin presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $554.86.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Timothy S. Cahill sold 3,975 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $515.36, for a total transaction of $2,048,556.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 8,877 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,574,850.72. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.