Lockheed Martin Corporation Stock Buy Recommendation Reiterated (LMT)

Editor's Note: TheStreet ratings do not represent the views of TheStreet's staff or its contributors. Ratings are established by computer based on metrics for performance (which includes growth, stock performance, efficiency and valuation) and risk (volatility and solvency). Companies with poor cash flow or high debt levels tend to earn lower ratings in our model.

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Lockheed Martin Corporation (NYSE:LMT) has been reiterated by TheStreet Ratings as a buy with a ratings score of A- . The company's strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its solid stock price performance, growth in earnings per share, increase in net income, revenue growth and notable return on equity. We feel these strengths outweigh the fact that the company has had generally high debt management risk by most measures that we evaluated.

 

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Highlights from the ratings report include:

• Investors have apparently begun to recognize positive factors similar to those we have mentioned in this report, including earnings growth. This has helped drive up the company's shares by a sharp 30.21% over the past year, a rise that has exceeded that of the S&P 500 Index. Regarding the stock's future course, although almost any stock can fall in a broad market decline, LMT should continue to move higher despite the fact that it has already enjoyed a very nice gain in the past year.
• LOCKHEED MARTIN CORP has improved earnings per share by 10.2% in the most recent quarter compared to the same quarter a year ago. The company has demonstrated a pattern of positive earnings per share growth over the past two years. We feel that this trend should continue. During the past fiscal year, LOCKHEED MARTIN CORP increased its bottom line by earning $7.86 versus $7.12 in the prior year. This year, the market expects an improvement in earnings ($8.10 versus $7.86).
• The net income growth from the same quarter one year ago has exceeded that of the S&P 500 and the Aerospace & Defense industry average. The net income increased by 5.3% when compared to the same quarter one year prior, going from $742.00 million to $781.00 million.
• Despite its growing revenue, the company underperformed as compared with the industry average of 3.5%. Since the same quarter one year prior, revenues slightly increased by 3.3%. Growth in the company's revenue appears to have helped boost the earnings per share.
• The company's current return on equity greatly increased when compared to its ROE from the same quarter one year prior. This is a signal of significant strength within the corporation. Compared to other companies in the Aerospace & Defense industry and the overall market, LOCKHEED MARTIN CORP's return on equity significantly exceeds that of both the industry average and the S&P 500.

 

Lockheed Martin Corporation engages in the research, design, development, manufacture, integration, operation, and sustainment of advanced technology systems and products in the United States and internationally. The company has a P/E ratio of 10.9, above the average aerospace/defense industry P/E ratio of 10.6 and below the S&P 500 P/E ratio of 17.7. Lockheed Martin has a market cap of $29.49 billion and is part of the industrial goods sector and aerospace/defense industry. Shares are up 14.2% year to date as of the close of trading on Tuesday.

You can view the full Lockheed Margin Corporation Ratings Report or get investment ideas from our investment research center.

--Written by a member of TheStreet Ratings Staff.

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