Instant Alert: Lockheed Martin forecasts higher profits in 2018 as Trump administration increases defense spending

MANAGE SUBSCRIPTIONS   |   UNSUBSCRIBE   |   VIEW ONLINE   Lockheed Martin forecasts higher profits in 2018 as Trump administration increases defense spending by Ankit Ajmera on Jan 29, 2018, 8:36 AM Advertisement Lockheed Martin beat on fourth-quarter revenue and forecast a rise in earnings this year.  The US defense contractor took a $1.9 billion charge during the quarter, mainly because of the new tax law.  The Defense Department expects to spend about $391 billion over 15 years to develop and buy 2,456 supersonic warplanes. (Reuters) - Lockheed Martin Corp reported fourth-quarter revenue on Monday that beat Wall Street estimates, helped by higher sales from the F-35 fighter jet program, while also forecasting a rise in earnings in 2018. Shares of the U.S. defense contractor rose 2.4 percent to $353.15 in premarket trading. The U.S. defense contractor took a $1.9 billion charge in the fourth quarter ended Dec. 31, mainly due to the change in U.S. tax law. Excluding a deferred non-cash gain of $122 million or 43 cents per share, and the tax charges, Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S calculations showed Lockheed earned $3.87 per share versus analysts estimate of $4.07 per share. Lockheed gave an adjusted figure for earnings from continuing operations of $4.30 per share. Net sales rose to $15.14 billion from $13.75 billion a year earlier, beating Wall Street estimates of $14.72 billion. Adjusted for new accounting standards from Jan. 1, Lockheed said it expects 2018 net sales in the range of $50.00 billion-$51.50 billion and earnings per share of $15.20-$15.50. Lockheed, like its peers in the United States, is expected to gain from an increase in defense spending under President Donald Trump's administration. The U.S. Defense Department expects to spend some $391 billion over 15 years to develop and buy 2,456 of the supersonic warplanes. Lockheed said sales in its aeronautics business, its biggest, grew 11.8 percent to $6.05 billion. (Reporting by Ankit Ajmera in Bengaluru; Editing by Arun Koyyur and Patrick Graham SEE ALSO: A map of fitness-tracker data may have compromised top-secret US military bases around the world   Share the latest business news with your network:    Email sent to: nguyenvu1187.love5@blogger.com   |   Manage your email preferences   |   Unsubscribe Terms of Service   |   Privacy Policy Business Insider. 150 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10011