WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Lockheed Martin Corp, the Pentagon's No. 1 supplier, on Tuesday reported a five percent increase in third quarter profit despite a continuing drop in revenues, but its largest division - aeronautics - saw margins drop by over one percentage point.
Lockheed posted third quarter profit of $888 million for the third quarter, or $2.76 per diluted share, as revenues fell two percent to $11.1 billion.
Operating margins edged lower at each of the company's five divisions in the quarter, with the trend most noticeable in the aeronautics sector, which builds the F-35 fighter jet. The division reported a 12 percent drop in earnings to $362 million, and its operating margin fell to 10.2 percent from 11.3 percent.
(Reporting by Andrea Shalal Editing by W Simon)
