Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) Downgraded by Robert W. Baird to Neutral

Robert W. Baird cut shares of Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) from an outperform rating to a neutral rating in a research report report published on Tuesday, MarketBeat reports. Robert W. Baird currently has $163.00 price target on the aerospace company’s stock.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. William Blair cut shares of Leidos from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Leidos from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. UBS Group upped their target price on Leidos from $149.00 to $168.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded Leidos to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Leidos from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Leidos currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $176.46.

Leidos Stock Performance

LDOS stock opened at $152.61 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.21. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.52, a PEG ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.65. Leidos has a 1 year low of $123.62 and a 1 year high of $202.90. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $145.10 and its two-hundred day moving average is $147.01.

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The aerospace company reported $2.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.47 by $0.50. The company had revenue of $4.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.11 billion. Leidos had a return on equity of 30.93% and a net margin of 7.53%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.29 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Leidos will post 10.62 EPS for the current year.

Leidos Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.05%. Leidos’s payout ratio is currently 16.10%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Gregory R. Dahlberg sold 1,250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.55, for a total transaction of $193,187.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 20,195 shares in the company, valued at $3,121,137.25. The trade was a 5.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.96% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Leidos during the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Leidos in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. REAP Financial Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Leidos by 422.2% in the fourth quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 188 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 152 shares in the last quarter. MCF Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Leidos in the first quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, Optimum Investment Advisors raised its stake in shares of Leidos by 260.0% in the first quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors now owns 234 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares in the last quarter. 76.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.