Buyer of Lockheed Stock Confirmed to Be Simmons

Texas billionaire Harold C. Simmons disclosed Monday that he has raised his stake in Lockheed Corp. to 16.9%, including a block of nearly 3.8 million shares that one of his companies bought last week.

But Simmons, in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, said his intent has not changed. Simmons has said in the past that he is buying Lockheed stock as an investment, although he may decide to seek control of the Calabasas-based aerospace giant.

Simmons last week received permission from the Federal Trade Commission to buy up to 25% of Lockheed.

Lockheed officials would make no comment on Simmons’ latest purchases. A spokesman for Simmons could not be reached for comment.

Valhi Inc. and other companies controlled by Simmons now own 10.7 million Lockheed shares, or 16.9% of the total. Simmons’ companies previously owned 10.84% of Lockheed.

The Simmons companies spent $150.7 million on 3.84 million shares between Nov. 22 and Dec. 7, the filing stated. Prices ranged between $36.75 per share and $39.25 per share.

One Simmons company, Kronos Inc., bought 3.76 million of the shares Dec. 7 for $147 million. The stock was paid for with cash that was part of a $400-million credit agreement between a Kronos subsidiary and a banking syndicate led by Banque Paribas of France.

That block of stock was sold last week by Batterymarch Financial Management in Boston to an unnamed buyer, who was widely rumored at the time to be Simmons.

Lockheed’s stock was unchanged Monday on the New York Stock Exchange, closing at $39.625 a share.