Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC Purchases 421 Shares of Lockheed Martin Co. (NYSE:LMT)

Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC grew its position in shares of Lockheed Martin Co. (NYSE:LMT) by 11.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,210 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after acquiring an additional 421 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC’s holdings in Lockheed Martin were worth $2,046,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of LMT. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new position in shares of Lockheed Martin during the third quarter valued at about $26,000. Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lockheed Martin during the fourth quarter valued at about $35,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in shares of Lockheed Martin during the third quarter valued at about $40,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lockheed Martin during the third quarter valued at about $42,000. Finally, Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lockheed Martin during the fourth quarter valued at about $47,000. 74.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on LMT shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Lockheed Martin from $540.00 to $535.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Barclays reduced their price target 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. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Lockheed Martin from $527.00 to $508.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. StockNews.com cut shares of Lockheed Martin from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Lockheed Martin from $555.00 to $525.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Lockheed Martin currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $554.20.

Insider Activity

In related 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 transaction 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Harry Edward Paul III sold 707 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $442.61, for a total transaction of $312,925.27. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 2,278 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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 a total of 7,133 shares of company stock worth $3,155,916 over the last 90 days. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Lockheed Martin Trading Up 2.8 %

NYSE:LMT opened at $474.31 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $462.89 and its 200-day moving average price is $521.59. Lockheed Martin Co. has a 52 week low of $419.70 and a 52 week high of $618.95. 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 stock has a market cap of $111.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.31, a PEG ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.43.

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

Lockheed Martin Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a dividend of $3.30 per share. This represents a $13.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.78%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. Lockheed Martin’s payout ratio is 59.30%.

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.