TLDR
- Lockheed Martin reported Q4 earnings of $5.80 per share, beating analyst estimates of $5.75, with revenue of $20.3B versus expected $19.85B.
- The company’s backlog reached a record $194B with 6% year-over-year sales growth in 2025.
- Missiles and fire control segment led growth with 18% revenue increase to $4.02B in Q4.
- Full-year 2025 free cash flow improved to $6.91B from $5.29B in 2024, despite pension contributions.
- Company forecasts 2026 revenue of $77.5B-$80B and earnings per share of $29.35-$30.25.
Lockheed Martin delivered strong fourth-quarter results that exceeded Wall Street expectations. The defense contractor reported earnings of $5.80 per share, topping analyst estimates by $0.05.
Revenue for the quarter reached $20.3 billion, surpassing the consensus estimate of $19.85 billion. This represented growth from $18.6 billion in the same quarter last year.
Shares rose 3.6% in premarket trading Thursday following the earnings announcement. The stock has climbed 29.94% over the past 12 months.
Lockheed Martin Corporation, LMT
Net earnings for the quarter came in at $1.34 billion compared to $527 million in the year-earlier period. However, the prior year’s quarter included $1.7 billion in losses from classified programs.
The latest quarter included a non-operational pension settlement charge of $479 million, or $377 million after tax. This impacted the bottom-line results.
Chairman, President and CEO Jim Taiclet highlighted the company’s performance metrics. He pointed to the record $194 billion backlog and 6% year-over-year sales growth as key achievements for 2025.
Missiles Segment Powers Revenue Growth
All four business segments posted revenue increases during the quarter. The aeronautics division saw revenue rise 6% to $8.52 billion.
Missiles and fire control led the way with an 18% jump to $4.02 billion. Rotary and mission systems grew 8% to $4.62 billion.
The space segment increased 8% to $3.16 billion. This broad-based growth reflected strong demand across the company’s product lines.
For the full year 2025, sales reached $75.0 billion, up from $71.0 billion in 2024. Net earnings totaled $5.02 billion, or $21.49 per share.
Cash Flow Shows Strength
Cash from operations jumped to $3.2 billion in the quarter from $1.0 billion a year earlier. Free cash flow reached $2.76 billion compared to $441 million in the prior-year quarter.
The quarter included an $860 million pension contribution. The previous year’s quarter had a $990 million contribution.
Full-year cash from operations totaled $8.56 billion. Free cash flow for 2025 came in at $6.91 billion, up from $5.29 billion in 2024.
The company returned cash to shareholders through dividends and buybacks. It paid $799 million in dividends during the quarter.
Share repurchases totaled $750 million for the quarter. For the full year, the company bought back $3.0 billion of stock.
Lockheed recently signed a framework agreement with the Department of War to expand THAAD interceptor production. The goal is to increase output from 96 to 400 interceptors annually over seven years.
This followed a separate agreement to accelerate PAC-3 Missile Segment Enhancement interceptor production. Taiclet emphasized the company’s position to execute under the Department of War’s acquisition approach.
For 2026, management forecasts revenue between $77.5 billion and $80.0 billion. Earnings per share are expected to range from $29.35 to $30.25, close to the analyst consensus of $29.41.
The company projects cash from operations of $9.15 billion to $9.45 billion. Free cash flow is forecast between $6.5 billion and $6.8 billion for the year.
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