Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) Price Target Raised to $163.00

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) had its target price lifted by Citigroup from $141.00 to $163.00 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a buy rating on the aerospace company’s stock.

LDOS has been the subject of a number of other reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded Leidos from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their target price for the company from $160.00 to $142.00 in a research report on Thursday, October 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on Leidos from $152.00 to $132.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Leidos from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 22nd. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $160.00 price target on shares of Leidos in a research note on Wednesday, November 4th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane boosted their price target on Leidos from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $161.29.

Leidos Stock Down 2.1%

Shares of LDOS opened at $131.08 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.60, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. Leidos has a 12 month low of $98.86 and a 12 month high of $205.00. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $128.83 and its 200-day moving average is $139.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.99 billion, a PE ratio of 10.48, a P/E/G ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 0.55.

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 3rd. The aerospace company reported $3.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.04 by $0.58. The business had revenue of $4.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.71 billion. Leidos had a return on equity of 31.48% and a net margin of 7.97%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.05 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Leidos will post 12.62 EPS for the current year.

Leidos announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Friday, July 31st that allows the company to buy back 20,000,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the aerospace company to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Share repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Leidos Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 15th will be issued a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 15th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.4%. This is a boost from Leidos’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. Leidos’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 15.38%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Gary May sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.85, for a total transaction of $140,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 10,204 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,437,233.40. The trade was a 8.93% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.77% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Leidos

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Renaissance Technologies LLC bought a new position in shares of Leidos in the first quarter worth about $20,225,000. Empowered Funds LLC grew its holdings in shares of Leidos by 169.0% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 144,847 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $22,527,000 after purchasing an additional 90,991 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Leidos during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $1,024,436,000. Insight Wealth Strategies LLC grew its holdings in shares of Leidos by 55.1% during the 2nd quarter. Insight Wealth Strategies LLC now owns 42,747 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $4,406,000 after purchasing an additional 15,192 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amundi increased its position in Leidos by 9.3% during the 2nd quarter. Amundi now owns 165,512 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $17,043,000 after purchasing an additional 14,049 shares in the last quarter. 76.12% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Leidos Company Profile

Leidos Holdings, Inc. is a technology and engineering company that provides services and solutions to government and commercial customers. Its work spans defense, intelligence, civil government and health, with offerings in areas such as information technology, cybersecurity, data analytics, engineering and mission software. The company also develops and integrates systems and equipment for complex missions, including defense and aviation applications, and provides technology and services to support government health programs and healthcare organizations.