Zacks Research Weighs in on Leidos’ Q1 Earnings (NYSE:LDOS)

Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS) – Analysts at Zacks Research upped their Q1 2025 earnings estimates for shares of Leidos in a report issued on Wednesday, December 11th. Zacks Research analyst A. Dutta now expects that the aerospace company will post earnings per share of $2.35 for the quarter, up from their previous forecast of $2.33. The consensus estimate for Leidos’ current full-year earnings is $9.89 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Leidos’ Q2 2025 earnings at $2.54 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $2.53 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $2.62 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $10.04 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $2.76 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $2.61 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $10.30 EPS.

Several other brokerages have also recently commented on LDOS. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on Leidos from $145.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on shares of Leidos from $180.00 to $218.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Leidos from $194.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut shares of Leidos from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $228.00 to $153.00 in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Truist Financial lowered their price objective on Leidos from $205.00 to $185.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $182.00.

Leidos Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:LDOS opened at $153.16 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.44 billion, a PE ratio of 17.44, a PEG ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. Leidos has a 1-year low of $105.52 and a 1-year high of $202.90. The business’s 50 day moving average is $170.92 and its 200-day moving average is $157.63.

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The aerospace company reported $2.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.96 by $0.97. The business had revenue of $4.19 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.06 billion. Leidos had a return on equity of 30.31% and a net margin of 7.37%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.03 earnings per share.

Leidos Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 16th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.04%. This is a positive change from Leidos’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. Leidos’s payout ratio is currently 17.31%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Surya N. Mohapatra sold 2,748 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $194.97, for a total transaction of $535,777.56. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 20,001 shares in the company, valued at $3,899,594.97. The trade was a 12.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Robert C. Kovarik, Jr. sold 1,047 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $184.94, for a total value of $193,632.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 6,408 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,185,095.52. This represents a 14.04 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.96% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LDOS. Rakuten Securities Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Leidos by 1,460.0% in the 3rd quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 156 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 146 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in Leidos during the third quarter worth about $29,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Leidos during the 3rd quarter worth about $30,000. 1832 Asset Management L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Leidos in the 2nd quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in shares of Leidos by 251.3% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 281 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 201 shares during the period. 76.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.