Public Sector Pension Investment Board Boosts Stock Holdings in Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS)

Public Sector Pension Investment Board lifted its holdings in shares of Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS) by 58.8% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,357 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after buying an additional 2,355 shares during the quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board’s holdings in Leidos were worth $927,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Gabelli Funds LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Leidos during the second quarter worth $209,000. 1832 Asset Management L.P. purchased a new stake in Leidos during the 2nd quarter worth about $34,000. Prospector Partners LLC boosted its stake in Leidos by 0.6% in the 2nd quarter. Prospector Partners LLC now owns 218,595 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $31,889,000 after purchasing an additional 1,292 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Leidos by 9.4% during the 2nd quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 28,554 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $4,165,000 after buying an additional 2,453 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ensign Peak Advisors Inc increased its position in shares of Leidos by 52.5% during the second quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc now owns 104,509 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $15,246,000 after buying an additional 35,990 shares during the period. 76.12% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Thomas Arthur Bell bought 1,712 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 1st. The stock was bought at an average price of $145.04 per share, with a total value of $248,308.48. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 22,398 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,248,605.92. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Thomas Arthur Bell bought 1,712 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 1st. The shares were bought at an average cost of $145.04 per share, with a total value of $248,308.48. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 22,398 shares in the company, valued at $3,248,605.92. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Robert C. Kovarik, Jr. sold 1,059 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.23, for a total transaction of $153,798.57. Following the sale, the director now owns 7,455 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,082,689.65. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.96% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently commented on LDOS. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Leidos from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. TD Cowen boosted their price target on shares of Leidos from $155.00 to $166.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Leidos from $140.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Truist Financial boosted their target price on Leidos from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on Leidos from $165.00 to $169.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Two 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 stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $164.83.

Leidos Price Performance

Shares of Leidos stock opened at $165.11 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $152.81 and its 200-day moving average price is $144.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.24 billion, a PE ratio of 71.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.70. Leidos Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $89.22 and a 12 month high of $166.01. 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 (NYSE:LDOS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The aerospace company reported $2.63 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.27 by $0.36. Leidos had a net margin of 2.72% and a return on equity of 28.40%. The firm had revenue of $4.13 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.06 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.80 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 7.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Leidos Holdings, Inc. will post 8.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Leidos Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 13th were given a dividend of $0.38 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 13th. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.92%. Leidos’s payout ratio is 65.52%.

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.