Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) Stock Gets Price Target Reduction from Citigroup

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) had its price objective reduced by Citigroup from $161.00 to $141.00 in a report published on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the aerospace company’s stock.

Several other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Bank of America raised their price target on Leidos from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, September 18th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Leidos from $124.00 to $138.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Robert W. Baird set a $150.00 target price on Leidos in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Leidos in a research report on Friday, September 4th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane increased their target price on Leidos from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Leidos currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $156.14.

Leidos Trading Up 2.1%

NYSE:LDOS opened at $121.78 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $15.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.36, a P/E/G ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 0.58. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $131.25 and its 200 day moving average price is $129.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 1.60 and a current ratio of 1.63. Leidos has a 52 week low of $98.86 and a 52 week high of $205.77.

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) last posted its earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The aerospace company reported $3.26 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.91 by $0.35. Leidos had a net margin of 7.80% and a return on equity of 30.81%. The company had revenue of $4.56 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.44 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.21 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Leidos will post 12.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Leidos Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th were issued a $0.43 dividend. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 15th. Leidos’s payout ratio is 16.04%.

Leidos declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Friday, July 31st that permits the company to repurchase 20,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization permits the aerospace company to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Share buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Leidos

In related news, Director Gary May sold 1,000 shares of Leidos stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.85, for a total value of $140,850.00. Following the sale, the director owned 10,204 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,437,233.40. This trade represents a 8.93% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Noel Geer sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.66, for a total value of $1,406,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 34,274 shares in the company, valued at $4,820,980.84. The trade was a 22.59% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.77% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Fulton Bank N.A. boosted its stake in shares of Leidos by 3.9% during the 1st quarter. Fulton Bank N.A. now owns 2,154 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $335,000 after buying an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its holdings in shares of Leidos by 2.7% in the 1st quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 3,748 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $583,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Signal Advisors Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of Leidos by 7.8% in the first quarter. Signal Advisors Wealth LLC now owns 1,688 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $262,000 after acquiring an additional 122 shares during the last quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Leidos by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 4,366 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $769,000 after acquiring an additional 123 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brand Asset Management Group Inc. raised its holdings in Leidos by 9.9% during the fourth quarter. Brand Asset Management Group Inc. now owns 1,447 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $261,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.12% of the company’s stock.

About Leidos

Leidos Holdings, Inc is a technology, engineering and services company that provides solutions to government and commercial customers. The company operates primarily in the defense, intelligence, civil and health markets, supporting customers with mission-critical systems, digital modernization, cybersecurity, data analytics and technical services.

Its offerings include defense and intelligence technologies, command-and-control systems, transportation and infrastructure solutions, health information technology, aviation and security services, and scientific and engineering support.