U.S. Judge Delays Raytheon Document Ruling

A federal judge delayed ruling on whether Raytheon Co. must provide certain documents to Lockheed Martin Corp. and Northrop Grumman Corp. Lockheed and Northrop are seeking the documents to bolster their fight against the government’s antitrust efforts to block their $9-billion merger. U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan gave the parties until Friday afternoon to meet and agree on a plan. Raytheon, the fifth-largest U.S. defense contractor in 1997, was given approval last year to complete a $9.5-billion merger with Hughes Electronics and a $2.95-billion acquisition of the defense business of Texas Instruments. Sullivan opened the status hearing saying he was inclined to rule that Raytheon must provide the documents, but at Raytheon’s request he scheduled a Friday conference call with the parties, to be followed by a ruling in court. On the NYSE, Raytheon’s Class A shares fell 81 cents to close at $54.38, Lockheed Martin rose $2.50 to $104, and Northrop Grumman gained $2.25 to close at $101.56.