Verdence Capital Advisors LLC Has $2.91 Million Stock Holdings in Lockheed Martin Co. (NYSE:LMT)

Verdence Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Lockheed Martin Co. (NYSE:LMT) by 9.0% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 5,992 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after buying an additional 494 shares during the quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Lockheed Martin were worth $2,912,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of LMT. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new position in shares of Lockheed Martin during the third quarter worth $26,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in Lockheed Martin during the 3rd quarter worth about $40,000. Heck Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lockheed Martin during the 4th quarter worth about $35,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lockheed Martin during the 3rd quarter worth about $42,000. Finally, Vestor Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lockheed Martin during the 3rd quarter worth about $46,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.19% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on LMT shares. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Lockheed Martin from $570.00 to $550.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Lockheed Martin from $497.00 to $468.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Lockheed Martin from $565.00 to $515.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Susquehanna cut their price target on shares of Lockheed Martin from $590.00 to $550.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Lockheed Martin from $527.00 to $508.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $553.67.

Insider Transactions at Lockheed Martin

In other news, insider Robert M. Lightfoot, Jr. sold 3,213 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $442.42, for a total value of $1,421,495.46. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 2,000 shares in the company, valued at $884,840. This represents a 61.63 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, VP Harry Edward Paul III sold 707 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $442.61, for a total transaction of $312,925.27. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 2,278 shares in the company, valued at $1,008,265.58. This trade represents a 23.69 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 7,133 shares of company stock valued at $3,155,916 in the last three months. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Lockheed Martin Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:LMT opened at $449.11 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $464.31 and a 200 day moving average of $523.28. The stock has a market cap of $105.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.18, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.43. Lockheed Martin Co. has a 12 month low of $419.70 and a 12 month high of $618.95. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.10.

Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The aerospace company reported $7.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.58 by $1.09. Lockheed Martin had a net margin of 7.51% and a return on equity of 101.47%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Lockheed Martin Co. will post 27.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lockheed Martin Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a $3.30 dividend. This represents a $13.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. Lockheed Martin’s dividend payout ratio is presently 59.30%.

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.