Ahead Of The Bell: Lockheed Martin

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — An analyst downgraded shares of Lockheed Martin Corp. on Wednesday, citing its weak earnings outlook for next year amid concerns about possible delays in a key fighter-jet program.

In a client note, Morgan Keegan analyst Brian Ruttenbur said, "As a result of the much weaker than expected outlook for Lockheed Martin in 2010 and our concerns that the company may continue to have weak margins over the next several years — particularly if any delays occur in the acceleration of the F-35 program — we see significantly less upside to the shares in the near term."

Ruttenbur cut his rating on Lockheed, the nation's largest military contractor, to "Market Perform" from "Outperform."

The Bethesda, Md., company issued weak 2010 earnings guidance, as had been predicted by Wall Street in recent weeks. It also warned that sales of fighter jets may dwindle and rising pension costs will crimp profits.

Defense contractors have been under increasing pressure from the U.S. government to curb costs and improve performance of often-expensive programs.