Principal Financial Group Inc. Decreases Stock Position in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:KTOS)

Principal Financial Group Inc. lowered its position in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:KTOS) by 30.1% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 11,842 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 5,100 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions were worth $276,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC increased its stake in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 15.0% during the 3rd quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 665,285 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $15,501,000 after buying an additional 86,567 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 0.8% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,556,544 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $82,883,000 after acquiring an additional 29,278 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC lifted its stake in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 239.5% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 273,100 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $6,363,000 after acquiring an additional 192,667 shares in the last quarter. L & S Advisors Inc purchased a new position in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in the third quarter valued at about $1,220,000. Finally, GSA Capital Partners LLP acquired a new stake in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $607,000. 75.92% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $25.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. B. Riley lowered shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $24.00 to $26.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and issued a $27.00 target price (up previously from $25.00) on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. JMP Securities lifted their price target on Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $27.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $22.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Kratos Defense & Security Solutions currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $26.40.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions Trading Up 7.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ KTOS opened at $29.53 on Tuesday. Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. has a 12-month low of $16.71 and a 12-month high of $29.96. The company has a market cap of $4.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 295.33 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a current ratio of 3.22, a quick ratio of 2.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $26.14 and its 200 day simple moving average is $23.60.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Kratos Defense & Security Solutions news, insider Thomas E. Iv Mills sold 6,603 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.88, for a total value of $164,282.64. Following the sale, the insider now owns 23,848 shares in the company, valued at approximately $593,338.24. This trade represents a 21.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Deanna H. Lund sold 6,000 shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.96, for a total value of $137,760.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 273,881 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,288,307.76. This trade represents a 2.14 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 81,358 shares of company stock valued at $2,108,120 over the last three months. Company insiders own 2.27% of the company’s stock.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions Profile

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc operates as a technology company that addresses the defense, national security, and commercial markets. It operates through two segments, Kratos Government Solutions and Unmanned Systems. The company offers ground systems for satellites and space vehicles, including software for command and control, telemetry, and tracking and control; jet-powered unmanned aerial drone systems, hypersonic vehicles, and rocket systems; propulsion systems for drones, missiles, loitering munitions, supersonic systems, spacecraft, and launch systems; command, control, communication, computing, combat, intelligence surveillance and reconnaissance; and microwave electronic products for missile, radar, missile defense, space, and satellite; counter unmanned aircraft systems, directed energy, communication and other systems, and virtual and augmented reality training systems for the warfighter.