CluenexLockheed Martin LMT
Lockheed Martin scores average on business quality (5.0 of 10). Here is why, in plain words, and what our sealed record shows.
Why it matters
- What Lockheed Martin does
Lockheed Martin builds defense aircraft, missiles, and space systems, generating revenue primarily through long-term government contracts with the US Department of Defense and allied nations.
- What it does best
Lockheed dominates advanced aerospace engineering through deep government relationships and proprietary defense systems like the F-35. Its gross margin of 11.8% trails peers like HWM at 36.0%, but switching costs remain nearly absolute due to multi-decade military programs.
- The main risk
Heavy reliance on government budget priorities creates vulnerability to defense spending shifts. With total debt at $21.7B and interest coverage at 8.2x, any disruption in Pentagon cash flow strains debt servicing capacity.
Quality, check by check
Scored against its own industry, from company filings.
Operating margins sit at 11.8% and free cash flow margin stands at 11.3%, reflecting stable operational efficiency. Profitability remains steady rather than expanding as scale increases due to fixed-price contract cost pressures.
Lockheed commands an entrenched government-backed moat that locks in sovereign defense buyers for decades. Its ROE of 86.2% places it in the 96th percentile of its sector, reflecting an asset-light equity base protected by insurmountable entry barriers.
Revenue grew to $77.0B, marking a 5.6% annual increase that accelerates past its historical multi-year expansion rate. This top-line momentum is driven by sustained procurement activity from defense agencies worldwide.
Total debt sits at $21.7B against $4.1B in cash, yielding an interest coverage of 8.2x where debt costs are manageable. Free cash flow reached $8.7B, supporting buybacks of $1.8B and dividends of $3.2B. The balance sheet is getting softer as leverage climbs.
Insiders
Executives and directors, from SEC Form 4 filings we read ourselves. Open market trades only; grants, option exercises and pre-planned sales left out.
1 sold $118K outside pre-planned sales.
Our sealed record on LMT
Verdicts appear here 30 days after we publish them; members see today's. Each one is in the nightly ledger, fingerprinted the night it was made.
The first sealed verdicts appear here on Oct 11, 2026.
Questions
Lockheed Martin scores average on the Cluenex quality check (5.0 of 10), measured against its own industry. Profitability is fair, moat fair, growth slow and financial health fair.
In the last 90 days of SEC Form 4 filings: 1 sold $118K outside pre-planned sales.
Oct 22, 2026, before the open.
See LMT today
- Today's verdict on LMT, and why
- Fair value with cautious, base and optimistic cases
- The exact price that would change the verdict
- Which stocks each signal names, the night it fires
Cite this page: Cluenex, “Lockheed Martin (LMT)”, https://cluenex.com/stocks/lmt/, data as of Oct 10, 2026.