Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS) Shares Sold by Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund

Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund reduced its position in shares of Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS) by 8.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,989 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 372 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund’s holdings in Leidos were worth $650,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Rakuten Securities Inc. grew its stake in Leidos by 1,460.0% during the 3rd quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 156 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 146 shares during the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Leidos during the third quarter valued at $29,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new position in shares of Leidos during the third quarter worth about $30,000. 1832 Asset Management L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of Leidos in the 2nd quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in Leidos by 251.3% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 281 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 201 shares during the last quarter. 76.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Leidos

In other Leidos news, Director Surya N. Mohapatra sold 2,748 shares of Leidos stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.97, for a total value of $535,777.56. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 20,001 shares in the company, valued at $3,899,594.97. The trade was a 12.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Robert C. Kovarik, Jr. sold 1,047 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $184.94, for a total transaction of $193,632.18. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 6,408 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,185,095.52. This represents a 14.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.96% of the company’s stock.

Leidos Stock Performance

Shares of Leidos stock opened at $158.84 on Tuesday. Leidos Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $104.72 and a 12 month high of $202.90. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The stock has a market cap of $21.19 billion, a PE ratio of 18.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 0.68. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $169.55 and a 200-day simple moving average of $155.65.

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The aerospace company reported $2.93 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.96 by $0.97. The company had revenue of $4.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.06 billion. Leidos had a return on equity of 30.31% and a net margin of 7.37%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.03 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Leidos Holdings, Inc. will post 10.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Leidos Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be given a $0.40 dividend. This is an increase from Leidos’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 16th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.01%. Leidos’s dividend payout ratio is presently 17.31%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Leidos from $205.00 to $228.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Citigroup lifted their target price on Leidos from $194.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Bank of America increased their price target on Leidos from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Leidos from $180.00 to $218.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Leidos from $183.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $191.23.

Leidos Profile

Leidos Holdings, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides services and solutions in the defense, intelligence, civil, and health markets in the United States and internationally. The company operates through Defense Solutions, Civil, and Health segments. The Defense Solutions segment offers national security solutions and systems for air, land, sea, space, and cyberspace for the U.S.