William Blair Brokers Raise Earnings Estimates for Leidos

Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS) – Investment analysts at William Blair increased their Q4 2024 earnings estimates for Leidos in a report issued on Tuesday, October 29th. William Blair analyst L. Dipalma now expects that the aerospace company will earn $2.13 per share for the quarter, up from their prior estimate of $2.10. The consensus estimate for Leidos’ current full-year earnings is $8.96 per share. William Blair also issued estimates for Leidos’ FY2025 earnings at $10.21 EPS.

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The aerospace company reported $2.93 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.96 by $0.97. The business had revenue of $4.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.06 billion. Leidos had a net margin of 2.72% and a return on equity of 28.40%. The company’s revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.03 EPS.

Several other equities research analysts have also weighed in on the company. Barclays raised their target price on Leidos from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. 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. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on shares of Leidos from $145.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of Leidos from $205.00 to $228.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price objective on shares of Leidos from $175.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued 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 price target of $187.77.

Leidos Stock Down 1.4 %

Leidos stock opened at $183.16 on Thursday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $162.48 and its two-hundred day moving average is $150.78. The stock has a market cap of $24.67 billion, a PE ratio of 20.86, a P/E/G ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 0.70. Leidos has a 1-year low of $94.57 and a 1-year high of $188.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.21 and a quick ratio of 1.11.

Leidos Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.87%. This is a boost from Leidos’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. Leidos’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.22%.

Insider Activity

In other Leidos news, Director Gary Stephen May sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on 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. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.96% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of LDOS. Olympiad Research LP acquired a new position in Leidos during the third quarter worth about $312,000. BNC Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Leidos in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $3,070,000. Hanseatic Management Services Inc. increased its stake in Leidos by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. Hanseatic Management Services Inc. now owns 3,877 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $632,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Marks Group Wealth Management Inc raised its holdings in Leidos by 0.7% during the third quarter. Marks Group Wealth Management Inc now owns 58,115 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $9,473,000 after purchasing an additional 415 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hanlon Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Leidos during the third quarter worth $533,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.12% of the company’s stock.

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.