Meritage Portfolio Management Purchases Shares of 653 Lockheed Martin Co. (NYSE:LMT)

Meritage Portfolio Management bought a new position in Lockheed Martin Co. (NYSE:LMT) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 653 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $296,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of LMT. Herold Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Lockheed Martin by 8.6% during the 3rd quarter. Herold Advisors Inc. now owns 3,448 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,410,000 after purchasing an additional 274 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd increased its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 770 shares during the last quarter. Alethea Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Lockheed Martin during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $415,000. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board lifted its position in shares of 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 buying an additional 700 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Gilbert & Cook Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Lockheed Martin by 22.8% in the 3rd quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. now owns 1,275 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $521,000 after buying an additional 237 shares during the period. 74.19% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on LMT. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on Lockheed Martin from $475.00 to $470.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. StockNews.com upgraded Lockheed Martin from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on shares of Lockheed Martin from $467.00 to $487.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on Lockheed Martin from $380.00 to $377.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Lockheed Martin from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the company from $475.00 to $518.00 in a research report on Monday, April 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $485.40.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Gregory M. Ulmer sold 6,204 shares of the company’s 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 completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 12,604 shares in the company, valued at $5,434,718.76. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, COO John Frank A. St sold 6,648 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $425.35, for a total transaction of $2,827,726.80. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Gregory M. Ulmer sold 6,204 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $431.19, for a total transaction of $2,675,102.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 12,604 shares in the company, valued at $5,434,718.76. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 16,874 shares of company stock worth $7,249,946. 0.17% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Lockheed Martin Stock Performance

Shares of LMT stock opened at $461.28 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $110.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.88, a PEG ratio of 4.25 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.89, a current ratio of 1.30 and a quick ratio of 1.03. Lockheed Martin Co. has a fifty-two week low of $393.77 and a fifty-two week high of $479.50. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $443.74 and its two-hundred day moving average is $444.46.

Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 23rd. The aerospace company reported $6.33 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.80 by $0.53. The firm had revenue of $17.20 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $6.43 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Lockheed Martin Co. will post 26.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.