Loral dropped its bid for Sanders Associates.

The decision removed a potential hurdle for Lockheed’s $1.2-billion bid for Sanders, which produces electronic warfare equipment such as radar jammers. Loral Corp. had made a hostile $50-per-share offer for Sanders before Lockheed topped the East Coast electronics firm last Wednesday with a $60-per-share bid. With the Loral offer out of the way, Lockheed appears to have a solid and defensible grip on Sanders.