Welch Group LLC Purchases 2,612 Shares of Lockheed Martin Corporation $LMT

Welch Group LLC grew its holdings in Lockheed Martin Corporation (NYSE:LMT) by 2.0% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 132,853 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after buying an additional 2,612 shares during the quarter. Lockheed Martin makes up 2.3% of Welch Group LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 15th biggest holding. Welch Group LLC’s holdings in Lockheed Martin were worth $67,655,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Trek Financial LLC raised its position in shares of Lockheed Martin by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Trek Financial LLC now owns 1,405 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $715,000 after buying an additional 16 shares during the period. Woodmont Investment Counsel LLC grew its position in Lockheed Martin by 0.9% in the third quarter. Woodmont Investment Counsel LLC now owns 3,572 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,819,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares during the period. Traynor Capital Management Inc. grew its position in Lockheed Martin by 4.3% in the third quarter. Traynor Capital Management Inc. now owns 20,537 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $10,459,000 after acquiring an additional 850 shares during the period. Walled Lake Planning & Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Lockheed Martin by 1.2% during the third quarter. Walled Lake Planning & Wealth Management LLC now owns 12,658 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $6,446,000 after acquiring an additional 144 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Virtue Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Lockheed Martin by 3.2% during the third quarter. Virtue Capital Management LLC now owns 613 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $312,000 after acquiring an additional 19 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.19% of the company’s stock.

Lockheed Martin Trading Up 0.1%

NYSE:LMT opened at $637.60 on Monday. Lockheed Martin Corporation has a 12-month low of $437.25 and a 12-month high of $692.00. The firm has a market cap of $147.29 billion, a PE ratio of 22.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 0.09. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.04. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $544.17 and a 200 day moving average price of $568.87.

Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 22nd. The aerospace company reported $7.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.52 by $0.45. Lockheed Martin had a return on equity of 83.41% and a net margin of 8.23%. The business had revenue of $20.71 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $20.48 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $6.95 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Lockheed Martin Corporation will post 30.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lockheed Martin Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 1st will be paid a dividend of $3.60 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 1st. This is a positive change from Lockheed Martin’s previous quarterly dividend of $3.45. This represents a $14.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. Lockheed Martin’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.15%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have commented on LMT. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Lockheed Martin from $620.00 to $665.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, October 26th. Bank of America reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $620.00 target price on shares of Lockheed Martin in a research report on Monday, October 26th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $600.00 price target on Lockheed Martin in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Lockheed Martin from $691.00 to $706.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 23rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Lockheed Martin from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Friday, October 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Lockheed Martin has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $638.05.

Lockheed Martin Profile

Lockheed Martin Corporation is a global security and aerospace company headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland. Formed in 1995 through the merger of Lockheed Corporation and Martin Marietta, the company develops and produces advanced defense, aerospace, and technology systems for government and commercial customers.

Its principal business areas include Aeronautics, Missiles and Fire Control, Rotary and Mission Systems, and Space. Products and services include military aircraft such as the F-35 Lightning II, C-130 Hercules, and F-16 Fighting Falcon; missile-defense and precision-strike systems; helicopters and naval systems; command, control, communications, and intelligence technologies; satellites; space exploration systems; and other classified space and defense programs.

Lockheed Martin serves the U.S.