Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) Reaches New 1-Year High – What’s Next?

Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $168.18 and last traded at $168.03, with a volume of 61220 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $167.20.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on LDOS shares. Truist Financial raised their price objective on Leidos from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Leidos from $172.00 to $183.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Leidos from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. TD Cowen lifted their target price on Leidos from $155.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Leidos from $169.00 to $194.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $166.92.

Leidos Stock Up 0.2 %

The firm has a market cap of $22.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 72.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 0.70. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $156.40 and its 200 day moving average is $147.32. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91.

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The aerospace company reported $2.63 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.27 by $0.36. The company had revenue of $4.13 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.06 billion. Leidos had a return on equity of 28.40% and a net margin of 2.72%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.80 EPS. Analysts forecast that Leidos Holdings, Inc. will post 8.95 EPS for the current year.

Leidos Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 27th. Investors of record on Friday, September 13th were paid a dividend of $0.38 per share. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.90%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 13th. Leidos’s dividend payout ratio is presently 65.52%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Leidos news, Director Robert C. Kovarik, Jr. sold 1,059 shares of Leidos stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.23, for a total transaction of $153,798.57. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 7,455 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,082,689.65. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Leidos news, Director Gary Stephen May sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.02, for a total value of $144,020.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 11,264 shares in the company, valued at $1,622,241.28. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Robert C. Kovarik, Jr. sold 1,059 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.23, for a total value of $153,798.57. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 7,455 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,082,689.65. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.96% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Leidos

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. 1832 Asset Management L.P. bought a new position in shares of Leidos during the 2nd quarter worth about $34,000. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Leidos by 251.3% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 281 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 201 shares during the last quarter. Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. bought a new position in shares of Leidos in the third quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV boosted its stake in Leidos by 122.5% in the second quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 307 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Family Firm Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Leidos during the second quarter worth $60,000. Institutional investors own 76.12% of the company’s stock.

About Leidos

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.