Northwest Investment Counselors LLC Makes New Investment in Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS)

Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS) during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 185 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $30,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Twin Tree Management LP purchased a new position in Leidos during the 1st quarter worth approximately $2,512,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its position in Leidos by 51.2% during the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 837,370 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $136,491,000 after purchasing an additional 283,558 shares during the period. Leeward Investments LLC MA boosted its holdings in Leidos by 4.9% in the first quarter. Leeward Investments LLC MA now owns 166,069 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $21,770,000 after purchasing an additional 7,703 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. grew its position in Leidos by 188.2% during the 2nd quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. now owns 8,274 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,207,000 after purchasing an additional 5,403 shares during the period. Finally, Advisors Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of 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 last quarter. 76.12% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Leidos

In other news, Director Gary Stephen May sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.02, for a total value of $144,020.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,264 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,622,241.28. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, CEO Thomas Arthur Bell bought 1,712 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 1st. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $145.04 per share, with a total value of $248,308.48. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 22,398 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,248,605.92. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Gary Stephen May sold 1,000 shares of Leidos stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.02, for a total value of $144,020.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 11,264 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,622,241.28. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.96% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LDOS has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Leidos from $172.00 to $183.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Barclays upped their price objective on Leidos from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Leidos from $140.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Leidos from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of Leidos from $155.00 to $166.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $166.92.

Leidos Stock Down 1.3 %

LDOS stock opened at $167.55 on Wednesday. Leidos Holdings, Inc. has a 52 week low of $90.30 and a 52 week high of $170.15. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $158.83 and a 200-day simple moving average of $148.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 52.52, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 0.70.

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The aerospace company reported $2.63 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.27 by $0.36. The company had revenue of $4.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.06 billion. Leidos had a return on equity of 28.40% and a net margin of 2.72%. Leidos’s quarterly revenue was up 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.80 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Leidos Holdings, Inc. will post 8.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Leidos Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 13th were paid a dividend of $0.38 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 13th. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.91%. Leidos’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 47.65%.

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.