Moors & Cabot Inc. Raises Stock Holdings in Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS)

Moors & Cabot Inc. grew its position in shares of Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS) by 13.4% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 3,978 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after acquiring an additional 469 shares during the quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc.’s holdings in Leidos were worth $580,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in shares of Leidos by 18.3% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 74,671 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $8,082,000 after acquiring an additional 11,576 shares during the last quarter. Twin Tree Management LP purchased a new stake in Leidos during the 1st quarter valued at $2,512,000. Leeward Investments LLC MA raised its holdings in Leidos by 4.9% during the 1st quarter. Leeward Investments LLC MA now owns 166,069 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $21,770,000 after buying an additional 7,703 shares during the period. CHURCHILL MANAGEMENT Corp purchased a new stake in Leidos during the 1st quarter valued at $1,900,000. Finally, Advisors Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in Leidos by 97.2% during the 1st quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 12,904 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,692,000 after buying an additional 6,360 shares during the period. 76.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Leidos Stock Performance

Shares of Leidos stock opened at $156.09 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $21.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 67.28, a P/E/G ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a current ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91. Leidos Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $89.22 and a 12 month high of $159.10. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $151.11 and its 200-day moving average price is $142.71.

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The aerospace company reported $2.63 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.27 by $0.36. Leidos had a return on equity of 28.40% and a net margin of 2.72%. The firm had revenue of $4.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.06 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.80 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Leidos Holdings, Inc. will post 8.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Leidos Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 27th. Investors of record on Friday, September 13th will be given a dividend of $0.38 per share. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.97%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 13th. Leidos’s payout ratio is currently 65.52%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on LDOS shares. Barclays increased their price target on Leidos from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. TD Cowen increased their price target on Leidos from $155.00 to $166.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Citigroup increased their target price on Leidos from $165.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Truist Financial increased their target price on Leidos from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on Leidos from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 24th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $163.08.

Insider Activity at Leidos

In related news, Director Gary Stephen May sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.02, for a total transaction of $144,020.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 11,264 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,622,241.28. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Leidos news, 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 completion of the sale, the director now owns 7,455 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,082,689.65. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Gary Stephen May sold 1,000 shares of the firm’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 completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 11,264 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,622,241.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.96% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.