Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) Stock Rating Cut to “Buy” at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen cut shares of Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a report released on Saturday morning,Wall Street Zen reports.

LMT has been the topic of a number of other reports. Sanford C. Bernstein cut their price target on Lockheed Martin from $629.00 to $564.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Barclays started coverage on Lockheed Martin in a research report on Friday, October 9th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $554.00 price target for the company. Vertical Research upgraded Lockheed Martin from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $600.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Weiss Ratings upgraded Lockheed Martin from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Friday, October 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $600.00 price objective on Lockheed Martin in a research report on Monday, July 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Lockheed Martin has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $627.10.

Lockheed Martin Stock Performance

Shares of LMT stock opened at $551.96 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $127.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.35, a PEG ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 0.09. Lockheed Martin has a 52-week low of $437.25 and a 52-week high of $692.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.34. The company’s 50 day moving average is $541.90 and its 200 day moving average is $543.85.

Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The aerospace company reported $7.94 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.22 by $0.72. The company had revenue of $20.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $19.34 billion. Lockheed Martin had a return on equity of 91.42% and a net margin of 8.16%. Lockheed Martin’s revenue was up 10.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.46 earnings per share. Lockheed Martin has set its FY 2026 guidance at 29.950-30.650 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Lockheed Martin will post 30.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lockheed Martin Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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. This is a boost from Lockheed Martin’s previous quarterly dividend of $3.45. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 1st. This represents a $14.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. Lockheed Martin’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 53.08%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lockheed Martin

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in Lockheed Martin in the second quarter worth $9,617,574,000. Corient Private Wealth LP purchased a new stake in shares of Lockheed Martin during the 2nd quarter valued at $101,960,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Lockheed Martin during the 2nd quarter valued at $645,258,000. Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new stake in shares of Lockheed Martin during the 2nd quarter valued at $497,469,000. Finally, Diamant Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Lockheed Martin by 60,339.0% in the 1st quarter. Diamant Asset Management Inc. now owns 879,387 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $531,493,000 after purchasing an additional 877,932 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.19% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Lockheed Martin

Here are the key news stories impacting Lockheed Martin this week:

• Positive Sentiment: UBS reiterated its bullish view and said Lockheed’s missile sales could grow roughly 20% annually for years. The highly profitable Missiles and Fire Control division could drive earnings growth faster than revenue, supporting the stock’s recent momentum. Why Lockheed Martin Stock Keeps Going Up
• Positive Sentiment: Lockheed announced a $300 million Texas investment and plans to add approximately 6,000 U.S. jobs, expanding advanced-munitions capacity. PAC-3 MSE production is targeted to rise from about 600 units annually to at least 2,000 over time, improving the company’s ability to capture sustained missile-defense demand. Lockheed Martin Supercharges US Missile Production With $300 Million Texas Investment
• Positive Sentiment: The company raised its quarterly dividend 4.3% to $3.60 per share, extending its dividend-growth streak to 24 years. The increase reinforces Lockheed’s appeal to income-focused investors. This Defense Stock Just Raised Its Dividend by 4.3%
• Positive Sentiment: Lockheed delivered a C-130J-30 aircraft to the U.S. Navy for the future E-130J Phoenix II TACAMO mission, highlighting continued demand for its strategic-airlift and command-and-control platforms. U.S. Navy Receives C-130J-30 Super Hercules
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts expect third-quarter earnings to grow about 7.6%, with missile-defense demand and production increases supporting revenue. Investors are watching the October 22 report for evidence that recent investments are translating into cash flow and profit growth.
• Neutral Sentiment: Potential changes to Norway’s sovereign wealth fund rules could eventually allow investment in Lockheed, which is currently excluded because of its nuclear-weapons involvement. Any benefit remains speculative and depends on the policy change.
• Negative Sentiment: RBC lowered its price target from $600 to $550 and maintained a “sector perform” rating, signaling limited near-term upside at current valuation. RBC Lowers Lockheed Martin Price Target
• Negative Sentiment: Investors continue to weigh Lockheed’s elevated debt, execution risks on fixed-price programs and the possibility of future contract charges. Bernstein also maintained a hold rating.

About Lockheed Martin

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.