Lockheed Martin Corporation
(
LMT
) has received an order from the National Aeronautics and Space
Administration (NASA) to supply biomedical, medical and health
services for all human spaceflight programs of the latter.
The contract, awarded by NASA's Johnson Space Center, has a
maximum potential value of $250 million, over 10 years. The
company's Information Systems & Global Solutions business
will be responsible for this contract.
The agreement entails Lockheed Martin to provide several kinds of
assistance to NASA. These include flight hardware advancement,
life sciences research performed on the International Space
Station, human factors engineering to improve devices and tests
for astronauts in zero gravity environment, space food
development, flight and ground crew training, radiation study,
and life sciences data archival.
The agreement comes under the Human Health and Performance
Contract (HHPC). Under this contract vehicle, NASA observes
astronauts' health and assists bioastronautics research. In
addition, these contracts support the improvement of human-health
and performance-innovations for space flights as well as
commercial aviations. These also help to manage tough atmospheres
on Earth.
It is evident that Lockheed Martin plays a significant role in
meeting NASA's demand for several kinds of instruments for the
space shuttle programs. A few days ago, the company acquired
orders for the production of external tanks for powering NASA's
Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) driven vessels. The company is
offering life sciences support at NASA's Johnson Space Center for
more than 30 years and has supported U.S. human spaceflight
programs for more than 50 years.
Bethesda, MD-based Lockheed Martin Corporation is a global
security and aerospace company that is principally engaged in the
research, design, development, manufacture, integration and
sustainment of advanced technology systems, products and
services.
Lockheed Martin's strength lies in its strong total backlog,
which stood at $82.3 billion at year-end 2012. In addition, we
believe the company's continuous effort toward debt-control and
effective share repurchase programs will act as catalysts.
As NASA and the U.S. Department of Defense are the major
customers of the company, any cutback in the U.S. defense budget
could limit Lockheed Martin's future growth prospects.
Lockheed Martin Corporation currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
Other stocks from the sector that are also performing well
presently include
Ducommun Inc.
(
DCO
) with a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), and
Alliant Techsystems Inc.
(
ATK
) and
The Boeing Company
(
BA
) with a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
ALLIANT TECHSYS (ATK): Free Stock Analysis
Report
BOEING CO (BA): Free Stock Analysis Report
DUCOMMUN INC DE (DCO): Free Stock Analysis
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LOCKHEED MARTIN (LMT): Free Stock Analysis
Report
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