Ariel Investments, an investment management company, released its “Ariel Focus Fund” third-quarter 2024 investor letter. A copy of the letter can be downloaded here. Due to the economy’s resilience and forecasters’ expectations of a soft landing, all major U.S. indices enjoyed gains in the third quarter. In the third quarter, the fund returned +10.61%, outperforming the +9.43% return for the Russell 1000 Value Index and the +5.89% return for the S&P 500 Index. In addition, please check the fund’s top five holdings to know its best picks in 2024.
Ariel Focus Fund highlighted stocks like Lockheed Martin Corporation (NYSE:LMT) in the third quarter 2024 investor letter. Based in Bethesda, Maryland, Lockheed Martin Corporation (NYSE:LMT) is a security and aerospace company. The one-month return of Lockheed Martin Corporation (NYSE:LMT) was -7.65%, and its shares gained 27.14% of their value over the last 52 weeks. On November 12, 2024, Lockheed Martin Corporation (NYSE:LMT) stock closed at $565.96 per share with a market capitalization of $134.152 billion.
Ariel Focus Fund stated the following regarding Lockheed Martin Corporation (NYSE:LMT) in its Q3 2024 investor letter:
“Additionally, leading global defense contractor Lockheed Martin Corporation (NYSE:LMT) increased following a top- and bottom-line earnings beat and subsequent raise in full year guidance. The company also announced three significant F-35 contracts underscoring the growing tailwinds for sustainment efforts and continued engineering advancements as the fleet continues to expand. LMT continues to be well positioned in the defense sector.”
Two fighter jets in flight, highlighting the technology and experience of the companies combat aircraft.
Lockheed Martin Corporation (NYSE:LMT) is not on our list of 31 Most Popular Stocks Among Hedge Funds. As per our database, 56 hedge fund portfolios held Lockheed Martin Corporation (NYSE:LMT) at the end of the second quarter which was 47 in the previous quarter. While we acknowledge the potential of Lockheed Martin Corporation (NYSE:LMT) as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns, and doing so within a shorter timeframe. If you are looking for an AI stock that is as promising as NVIDIA but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.
In another article, we discussed Lockheed Martin Corporation (NYSE:LMT) and shared the list of best American defense stocks to buy according to hedge funds. In addition, please check out our hedge fund investor letters Q3 2024 page for more investor letters from hedge funds and other leading investors.
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Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.