Jan. 22 (Bloomberg) -- Lockheed Martin Corp., the world’s largest defense company, said fourth-quarter earnings increased 3 percent on higher computer-services sales. The company said profit this year will be lower than forecast because of pension costs.

Net income climbed to $823 million, or $2.05 a share, from $799 million, or $1.89, a year earlier, Bethesda, Maryland-based Lockheed said in a statement today. Sales gained 2.7 percent to $11.1 billion. Quarterly profit beat analysts’ estimates.

Chief Executive Officer Robert Stevens has expanded sales of computer services and support to federal government agencies including the U.S. Department of Energy and the State Department to counter lower deliveries of F-16 jets. Sales at the information technology unit gained 16 percent last quarter, while aeronautics revenue declined 4.6 percent. The company will face $470 million in pension costs this year, compared with prior projections of $60 million.

“Although we, along with many others, thought that pension was likely to be painful in 2009, this is twice the adjusted expense that we were projecting,” Rob Stallard, a New York-based analyst with Macquarie Research Equities, wrote in a report today. He rates the shares “outperform” and doesn’t own any. “Baking the pension issue into the stock should allow investors to return their focus to defense policy, spending, programs and execution.”

The company was projected to report earnings per share rose to $1.91, the average of 17 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg. Sales were anticipated to rise 2.4 percent to $11.1 billion, from $10.8 billion.

Shares Rise

Lockheed rose $5.05, or 6.3 percent, to $85.08 at 4:15 p.m. in New York Stock Exchange composite trading. The shares have fallen 16 percent in the past year.

The company lowered its 2009 profit forecast first made in October to reflect increased pension costs after declining stock markets eroded plan assets. In the fourth quarter, the company made a contribution of $109 million to its pension plans.

Lockheed now predicts 2009 earnings per share of $7.05 to $7.25, compared with the earlier forecast of $7.65 to $7.90. Sales are forecast higher than previously, at a range of $44.7 billion to $45.7 billion, compared with an October projection of $44.25 billion to $45.25 billion.

Lockheed is now estimated to report earnings per share this year of $7.83 on sales of $45.2 billion, according to the Bloomberg survey.

Unit Performance

Sales and profit rose at two of Lockheed’s four groups, information and electronics, while declining at the others: aeronautics and space.

Lockheed said sales of information services rose to $3.3 billion in the quarter. Operating profit gained 12 percent to $307 million. In December, the group won a contract valued at as much as $5 billion over 11 years to help improve energy efficiency at U.S. government buildings as part of the Federal Energy Management Program.

Lockheed has projected the information group may become the company’s largest source of revenue for the first time this year, overtaking aircraft and electronics.

“At information systems and global services, we had a tremendous year in terms of the number of competitions and contracts we’ve won,” Chief Financial Officer Bruce Tanner said in an interview today. “We’ve had an amazing track record of success and we’ve won quite a bit.”

Lockheed’s electronics group increased sales 2.1 percent to $2.93 billion. Operating profit rose 2.5 percent to $369 million.

Sales at the aeronautics business fell to $2.87 billion from $3 billion. Deliveries of the F-16 fighter are declining while the F-35 Lightning II jet that will replace it has yet to begin full production. Operating profit fell 4.2 percent to $369 million.

The company’s space systems division reported a 4.4 percent drop in sales to $2.03 billion. Operating profit fell 11 percent to $210 million.

To contact the reporter on this story: Edmond Lococo in Boston at elococo@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: January 22, 2009 16:36 EST