Kratos Defense & Security Solutions (NASDAQ:KTOS) Now Covered by Analysts at Piper Sandler

Equities research analysts at Piper Sandler assumed coverage on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions (NASDAQ:KTOS) in a research note issued on Wednesday, Marketbeat reports. The brokerage set a “hold” rating on the aerospace company’s stock.

KTOS has been the topic of a number of other reports. Citigroup reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a research report on Monday, January 12th. BNP Paribas Exane set a $80.00 price target on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a research report on Tuesday, November 18th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $112.00 to $134.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. KeyCorp began coverage on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a research note on Thursday, December 18th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $90.00 price target on the stock. Finally, JMP Securities upped their price objective on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $70.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $93.06.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions Trading Down 5.6%

Shares of KTOS stock opened at $113.85 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $86.04 and its 200-day simple moving average is $77.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 4.30 and a quick ratio of 3.68. Kratos Defense & Security Solutions has a 1-year low of $23.90 and a 1-year high of $134.00. The firm has a market cap of $19.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 875.84 and a beta of 1.09.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions (NASDAQ:KTOS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The aerospace company reported $0.14 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.12 by $0.02. Kratos Defense & Security Solutions had a net margin of 1.56% and a return on equity of 3.14%. The firm had revenue of $347.60 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $323.01 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.11 earnings per share. Kratos Defense & Security Solutions’s revenue for the quarter was up 26.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Kratos Defense & Security Solutions will post 0.31 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Jonah Adelman sold 30,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.80, for a total transaction of $2,244,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 9,348 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $699,230.40. This represents a 76.24% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Stacey G. Rock sold 16,568 shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.74, for a total value of $1,934,148.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 26,487 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,092,092.38. The trade was a 38.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 911,815 shares of company stock valued at $74,226,491 over the last three months. 2.37% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its position in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 22.6% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 190,481 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $5,655,000 after acquiring an additional 35,098 shares during the period. Amundi bought a new position in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in the 1st quarter valued at about $791,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its position in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 64.4% in the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 1,315 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 515 shares in the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its position in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 178.0% during the 1st quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 3,570 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $108,000 after buying an additional 2,286 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 11.7% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 393,614 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $11,686,000 after acquiring an additional 41,265 shares in the last quarter. 75.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Kratos Defense & Security Solutions News

Here are the key news stories impacting Kratos Defense & Security Solutions this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Noble Financial raised its FY2026 EPS estimate to $0.54 (from $0.43) and maintains an “Outperform” rating; the firm also released quarterly EPS cadence for FY2026 (Q1 $0.10, Q2 $0.15, Q3 $0.15, Q4 $0.14), which signals improving underlying expectations for revenue/profitability. Noble Financial estimates and coverage summary
• Neutral Sentiment: Piper Sandler initiated coverage with a “Neutral” rating — this neither endorses further upside nor flags fresh downside, but it reduces the breadth of bullish analyst momentum investors were expecting after the stock’s surge. Piper Sandler initiates coverage
• Negative Sentiment: Market commentary is calling attention to KTOS’s elevated valuation after the recent share-price surge — analysts and investors are reassessing whether the company’s fundamentals justify the high multiple, which can pressure the stock and trigger short-term profit-taking. Valuation assessment after recent surge

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions Company Profile

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc (NASDAQ: KTOS) is a technology-driven company that specializes in national security and defense solutions for government and military customers. The firm’s core capabilities span unmanned systems, satellite communications, missile defense, cyber security, and directed-energy weapons. Through its integrated approach, Kratos delivers mission-critical products and services designed to enhance operational readiness and support force modernization initiatives.

In the unmanned systems arena, Kratos develops high-performance aerial platforms used as target drones, low-cost attritable aircraft and experimental stealth demonstrators.