Lockheed Martin stock jumps on earnings beat, raised guidance

Investing.com -- Lockheed Martin Corporation (NYSE: LMT) reported second-quarter results that exceeded analyst expectations and raised its full-year outlook, sending shares up 7.3% premarket on Thursday.

The defense contractor posted adjusted earnings of $7.94 per share, beating the analyst consensus of $7.23 by $0.71. Revenue climbed 11% YoY to $20.1 billion, surpassing the estimate of $19.37 billion. The strong performance was driven by growth across all segments, reflecting increased volume and munitions production ramps, particularly at the Missiles and Fire Control division.

For fiscal 2026, Lockheed Martin raised its earnings guidance to $29.95-$30.65 per share, with a midpoint of $30.30 that exceeds the consensus of $29.85. The company also increased its revenue outlook to $79.75-$81.75 billion, with a midpoint of $80.75 billion above the consensus of $79.1 billion. Free cash flow guidance was raised to $7.0-$7.2 billion from a prior range of $6.5-$6.8 billion.

"We delivered strong second-quarter performance, with over $20 billion in sales – a YoY increase of 11% – free cash flow of $2.9 billion, and $65 billion of new orders, which takes our backlog to a record $230 billion," said Chairman, President and CEO Jim Taiclet.

The company's second quarter results benefited from comparisons to the prior year, which included $1.6 billion in program losses on a classified program and helicopter contracts. Adjusted operating profit surged to $2.2 billion from $571 million a year earlier.

Lockheed Martin generated cash from operations of $3.2 billion and free cash flow of $2.9 billion in the quarter, compared to $201 million and negative $150 million, respectively, in the prior year period. The company reported a record backlog of $230 billion, including a multi-year $35 billion contract with the Missile Defense Agency for THAAD interceptors.

Business segment operating profit is expected to reach $8.5-$8.7 billion for the full year, up from a prior range of $8.425-$8.675 billion.

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