Lockheed Martin Corporation (NYSE: LMT) continued its hot start to 2018 on Monday when the company reported big fourth-quarter earnings and revenue beats and said its balance sheet and backlog are strong headed into 2018.
Lockheed reported fourth-quarter adjusted earnings per share from continuing operations of $4.30 on $15.1 billion in revenue. Both numbers topped consensus analyst forecasts of $4.06 and $14.75 billion.
For the full year 2017, Lockheed reported adjusted EPS of $13.33, revenue of $51 billion and cash from operations of $6.5 billion.
CEO Marillyn Hewson says Lockheed is committed to growing its business with an eye on creating shareholder value.
“We delivered outstanding performance as we completed 2017, which enabled us to end the year with strong sales growth, $6.5 billion of cash from operations and a backlog of nearly $100 billion, while also returning over $4 billion to our shareholders,” Hewson says.
Lockheed repurchased 7.1 million shares of its stock in 2017 for $2.0 billion. It also paid out $2.2 billion in dividends on the year.
Lockheed also provided 2018 guidance and expects to deliver diluted EPS of between $15.20 and $15.50 on the year. It also anticipates full-year 2018 revenue of between $50 and $52.5 billion.
By segment, Lockheed’s Missles and Fire Control business reported the strongest revenue growth in the fourth quarter, up 30.5 percent to $2.29 billion. Rotary and Mission Systems revenue was up 14.2 percent to $4.35 billion and Aeronautics revenue was up 11.8 percent to $6.04 billion. Space revenue declined 11.9 percent to $2.44 billion.
Lockheed says the majority of the growth in the company’s largest division, Aeronautics, was due to an extra $75 million in operating profit from the F-35 program.
Earlier this month, CFRA analyst Jim Corridore says Lockheed will continue to be a big winner for shareholders under President Donald Trump.
“We see LMT as a blue-chip defense contractor with a strong cash flow and a significant long-term growth opportunity driven by the production ramp of the F-35 program and international sales,” Corridore says. “While we see the valuation as high, LMT execution, strong cash flows, and healthy share repurchases, along with an improved operating environment, are…
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