** Lockheed Martin LMT.N forecast on Tuesday it will make less-than-expected profit in 2025, as the top U.S. defense company grapples with the delayed rollout of upgrades to the F-35 fighter jet that are vital to its bottom line
** LMT booked $1.29 bln in losses associated with classified programs at its aeronautics and missiles and fire control business units
** Losses occurred on fixed-price contracts where LMT agreed on a price with the customer, but its costs went up, forcing the defense firm to perform the work at a loss
** Median PT of 24 brokerages covering the stock is $527, according to data compiled by LSEG
ON THE CHARGES
** Morgan Stanley ("equal weight", cuts PT to $525 from $555) says the sizable charges incurred in the quarter at aeronautics and missiles and fire control businesses have come at a time when the new administration is reportedly gearing up to take a hard look at federal contracting structures
** RBC Capital Markets ("outperform", cuts PT to $550 from $570) says the aeronautics charges were unexpected, but believes it was a prudent move given the low investor expectation for the stock
** TD Cowen ("buy", cuts PT to $520 from $540) says customer demand for the classified MFC product is high and "that scaling its production will not scale losses for LMT"
(Reporting by Anshuman Tripathy in Bengaluru)
((Anshuman.Tripathy@thomsonreuters.com;))
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