Lockheed Martin (LMT) will raise its quarterly dividend by 7.7 percent to $2.80 per share in 2021. This follows last year's 8.3 percent dividend hike to $2.60 per share and will be the 18th consecutive year of dividend increases by Lockheed Martin.

The next LMT dividend of $2.80 per share is payable on December 27, 2021, to holders of record as of the close of business on December 1, 2021. A new annual rate of $11.20 per share yields 3.3% at a stock price of $344 for Lockheed Martin.

Lockheed Martin will now pay an estimated $3.1 billion in dividends to its shareholders annually. The average dividend growth rate in the last five years is 9.0 percent annually. This year's dividend hike is the smallest in more than a decade for LMT with at least double digit increases every year through 2018.

Lockheed Martin is a security and aerospace company that is principally engaged in the research, design, development, manufacture, integration and sustainment of advanced technology systems, products and services. The company also provides a broad range of management, engineering, technical, scientific, logistics, system integration and cybersecurity services. Lockheed serves both U.S. and international customers with its principal customers being agencies of the U.S. Government. The company's four business segments are: Aeronautics, Missiles and Fire Control (MFC), Rotary and Mission Systems (RMS) and Space. Lockheed has paid a dividend every year since 1995.