Lockheed Martin boosts quarterly dividend by nearly 5 percent

Lockheed Martin Corp. (NYSE: LMT) announced that its board of directors has authorized a fourth-quarter, 2024 dividend of $3.30 a share. This is an increase of 15 cents per share, or 4.8 percent, over the last quarter and represents the defense contractor’s 22nd straight year of dividend increases, according to an Oct. 2 company news release. The dividend is payable on Dec. 27, to holders of record as of the close of business on Dec. 2. At Lockheed’s current stock price, the dividend yields more than 2.1 percent on an annual basis. The company’s board has also authorized the purchase of up to an additional $3 billion of Lockheed Martin common stock under its share-repurchase program. With this increase, total authorization for future repurchases under the stock-buyback program is about $10 billion. The number of shares bought and the timing of them are at the discretion of management and subject to compliance with applicable laws and regulations. Lockheed Martin — a Bethesda, Maryland–based global defense-technology company — has two plants in Central New York, in Salina and in Owego, respectively.