Tallahassee, FL 10/26/11 (PennyPayDay) -- Lockheed Martin Corp (NYSE:LMT), the world's biggest defense contractor, reported that quarterly profit rose along with sales, and it raised its full-year forecast. Net income came to $700 million, or $2.10 a share, for the third quarter, compared with $560 million, or $1.54 a share, a year earlier. Quarterly revenue rose nearly 7 percent to $12.1 billion, compared with $11.74 billion expected by analysts.
Lockheed said its third quarter was boosted by its aeronautics division, where revenue rose 21 percent to $4 billion, from $3.3 billion last year. Operating income in the division rose 15 percent to $447 during the quarter.
The better-than-expected quarter prompted Lockheed to raise its outlook for the year, toward the high end or above what most analysts expected. The company raised its earnings forecast for the year to a range between $7.40 and $7.60 per share, from between $7.35 and $7.55 per share. Analysts had expected full-year net income of $7.52 per share.
Lockheed, developer of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, F-16 fighter jet and C-130J military transport plane, is cutting jobs and holding down discretionary expenses as U.S. defense spending comes under pressure. It’s aimed its development at high-tech weapons products and has courted foreign business and the health-care sector as Pentagon spending loses steam. The company said it expected flat sales for 2012, assuming the U.S. defense budget is approved in a timely manner with funding at levels consistent with President Barack Obama's proposed budget.
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