Geode Capital Management LLC Buys 59,597 Shares of Lockheed Martin Co. (NYSE:LMT)

Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Lockheed Martin Co. (NYSE:LMT) by 1.2% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 4,887,242 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after acquiring an additional 59,597 shares during the quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Lockheed Martin were worth $2,374,557,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in LMT. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Lockheed Martin by 17.9% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 7,471,071 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $3,630,492,000 after buying an additional 1,132,461 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in shares of Lockheed Martin by 8.5% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,074,855 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,797,437,000 after purchasing an additional 240,306 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Lockheed Martin by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,743,757 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $847,361,000 after purchasing an additional 15,085 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC grew its position in Lockheed Martin by 53,784.3% in the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,235,568 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $600,412,000 after purchasing an additional 1,233,275 shares during the period. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp increased its stake in Lockheed Martin by 1,239.6% during the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 548,237 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $266,410,000 after purchasing an additional 507,312 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.19% of the company’s stock.

Lockheed Martin Stock Up 1.2 %

Lockheed Martin stock opened at $446.81 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.10. The company has a market capitalization of $105.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.07, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.43. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $455.61 and a 200-day moving average price of $509.05. Lockheed Martin Co. has a twelve month low of $419.70 and a twelve month high of $618.95.

Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The aerospace company reported $7.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.58 by $1.09. Lockheed Martin had a return on equity of 101.47% and a net margin of 7.51%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Lockheed Martin Co. will post 27.15 EPS for the current year.

Lockheed Martin Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a $3.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $13.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.95%. Lockheed Martin’s payout ratio is 59.30%.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Harry Edward Paul III sold 707 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $442.61, for a total transaction of $312,925.27. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 2,278 shares in the company, valued at $1,008,265.58. This represents a 23.69 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Robert M. Lightfoot, Jr. sold 3,213 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $442.42, for a total transaction of $1,421,495.46. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 2,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $884,840. The trade was a 61.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 7,133 shares of company stock valued at $3,155,916 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on LMT. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Lockheed Martin from $540.00 to $535.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 30th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on Lockheed Martin from $527.00 to $508.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Barclays lowered their price objective on Lockheed Martin from $565.00 to $515.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded Lockheed Martin from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $611.00 to $523.00 in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price objective on Lockheed Martin from $700.00 to $600.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $539.53.

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.