Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) Earns Buy Rating from Truist Financial

Truist Financial restated their buy rating on shares of Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) in a report issued on Wednesday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $165.00 price objective on the aerospace company’s stock, up from their previous price objective of $150.00.

Several other analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on Leidos from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a hold rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Argus increased their price target on Leidos from $120.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 20th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Leidos from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Leidos from $125.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Wednesday, March 27th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Leidos from $137.00 to $147.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Leidos has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $141.17.

Leidos Stock Performance

Shares of LDOS stock opened at $141.67 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $129.12 and its 200-day moving average price is $115.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 1.35. Leidos has a one year low of $76.58 and a one year high of $143.35. The firm has a market cap of $19.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 61.06, a P/E/G ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 0.66.

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The aerospace company reported $2.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.70 by $0.59. The company had revenue of $3.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.82 billion. Leidos had a net margin of 2.04% and a return on equity of 25.66%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.47 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Leidos will post 8.36 EPS for the current year.

Leidos Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 14th will be given a $0.38 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 14th. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.07%. Leidos’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 65.52%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Gary Stephen May sold 2,745 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.49, for a total value of $341,725.05. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 11,352 shares in the company, valued at $1,413,210.48. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, Director Gary Stephen May sold 2,745 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.49, for a total transaction of $341,725.05. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 11,352 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,413,210.48. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director David G. Fubini sold 7,874 shares of Leidos stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $127.89, for a total transaction of $1,007,005.86. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 14,696 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,879,471.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.96% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Leidos

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of LDOS. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Leidos during the fourth quarter worth approximately $18,976,000. Raymond James & Associates raised its holdings in shares of Leidos by 18.6% during the fourth quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 245,665 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $26,591,000 after acquiring an additional 38,496 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in Leidos by 7.8% during the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,143,664 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $105,400,000 after purchasing an additional 82,447 shares during the last quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Leidos by 134.9% in the third quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 14,114 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,301,000 after purchasing an additional 8,106 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Creative Planning raised its stake in shares of Leidos by 15.6% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 95,319 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $8,785,000 after purchasing an additional 12,839 shares in the last quarter. 76.12% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Leidos Company 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.