Welch & Forbes LLC Trims Position in Lockheed Martin Co. (NYSE:LMT)

Welch & Forbes LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Lockheed Martin Co. (NYSE:LMT) by 1.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,476 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 113 shares during the period. Welch & Forbes LLC’s holdings in Lockheed Martin were worth $3,388,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in LMT. Herold Advisors Inc. grew its position in Lockheed Martin by 8.6% during the third quarter. Herold Advisors Inc. now owns 3,448 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,410,000 after buying an additional 274 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd increased its stake in shares of Lockheed Martin by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 21,088 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $8,624,000 after purchasing an additional 770 shares in the last quarter. Alethea Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Lockheed Martin in the 3rd quarter worth about $415,000. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board raised its holdings in Lockheed Martin by 6.4% in the 3rd quarter. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board now owns 11,697 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $4,784,000 after purchasing an additional 700 shares during the period. Finally, Gilbert & Cook Inc. grew its holdings in Lockheed Martin by 22.8% in the third quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. now owns 1,275 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $521,000 after purchasing an additional 237 shares during the period. 74.19% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have commented on LMT. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on Lockheed Martin from $467.00 to $487.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on shares of Lockheed Martin from $380.00 to $377.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Lockheed Martin from $482.00 to $499.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. Susquehanna lowered their price target on shares of Lockheed Martin from $550.00 to $540.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Lockheed Martin from $513.00 to $503.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $485.40.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Gregory M. Ulmer sold 6,204 shares of Lockheed Martin stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $431.19, for a total value of $2,675,102.76. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 12,604 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,434,718.76. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Lockheed Martin news, COO John Frank A. St sold 6,648 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $425.35, for a total transaction of $2,827,726.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Gregory M. Ulmer sold 6,204 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $431.19, for a total value of $2,675,102.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 12,604 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,434,718.76. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 16,874 shares of company stock valued at $7,249,946 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Lockheed Martin Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of LMT traded up $3.78 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $466.56. The stock had a trading volume of 723,400 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,144,404. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.89, a current ratio of 1.30 and a quick ratio of 1.11. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $448.81 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $445.66. The company has a market cap of $111.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.07, a PEG ratio of 4.23 and a beta of 0.46. Lockheed Martin Co. has a 1-year low of $393.77 and a 1-year high of $479.50.

Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The aerospace company reported $6.33 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.80 by $0.53. The firm had revenue of $17.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.04 billion. Lockheed Martin had a return on equity of 85.96% and a net margin of 9.73%. The firm’s revenue was up 13.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $6.43 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Lockheed Martin Co. will post 26.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Lockheed Martin Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Investors of record on Monday, June 3rd will be paid a dividend of $3.15 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 3rd. This represents a $12.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.70%. Lockheed Martin’s dividend payout ratio is presently 46.10%.

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.