Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) Downgraded to “Buy” Rating by StockNews.com

Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) was downgraded by equities researchers at StockNews.com from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on Lockheed Martin from $675.00 to $665.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Lockheed Martin from $560.00 to $610.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Lockheed Martin from $589.00 to $603.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered shares of Lockheed Martin from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $611.00 to $523.00 in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Lockheed Martin from $602.00 to $543.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $605.36.

Lockheed Martin Stock Performance

LMT traded down $0.43 on Friday, hitting $481.82. 816,922 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 885,411. The company has a 50 day moving average of $521.08 and a 200-day moving average of $534.18. Lockheed Martin has a 12-month low of $413.92 and a 12-month high of $618.95. The stock has a market capitalization of $114.21 billion, a PE ratio of 17.44, a PEG ratio of 4.05 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a quick ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.66.

Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The aerospace company reported $6.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.50 by $0.34. The company had revenue of $17.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.38 billion. Lockheed Martin had a net margin of 9.36% and a return on equity of 101.44%. Lockheed Martin’s revenue was up 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $6.77 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Lockheed Martin will post 26.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lockheed Martin

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its stake in Lockheed Martin by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 656,807 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $382,498,000 after buying an additional 13,253 shares during the last quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc. boosted its position in shares of Lockheed Martin by 79.9% in the third quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc. now owns 12,068 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $7,054,000 after acquiring an additional 5,361 shares during the last quarter. Old West Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Lockheed Martin by 6.6% in the third quarter. Old West Investment Management LLC now owns 26,633 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $15,569,000 after purchasing an additional 1,643 shares during the period. Virtue Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Lockheed Martin by 112.8% during the third quarter. Virtue Capital Management LLC now owns 2,249 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,315,000 after purchasing an additional 1,192 shares during the period. Finally, World Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Lockheed Martin by 55.1% in the 3rd quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 6,468 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $3,781,000 after purchasing an additional 2,297 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.19% of the company’s stock.

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.