Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) Sees Strong Trading Volume – Here’s Why

Shares of Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS) saw an uptick in trading volume on Friday . 1,100,852 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 25% from the previous session’s volume of 882,294 shares.The stock last traded at $160.63 and had previously closed at $167.96.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LDOS has been the topic of several analyst reports. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of Leidos from $180.00 to $218.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Citigroup raised their target price on Leidos from $194.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Bank of America boosted their price target on Leidos from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Leidos from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Leidos from $183.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Two research 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, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $191.23.

Leidos Trading Down 4.4 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.23. The company’s 50 day moving average is $169.55 and its 200 day moving average is $155.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.30, a PEG ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 0.68.

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The aerospace company reported $2.93 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.96 by $0.97. Leidos had a net margin of 7.37% and a return on equity of 30.31%. The business had revenue of $4.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.06 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.03 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Leidos Holdings, Inc. will post 10.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Leidos Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.00%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 16th. This is a positive change from Leidos’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. Leidos’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.22%.

Insider Activity

In other Leidos news, Director Surya N. Mohapatra sold 2,748 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.97, for a total transaction of $535,777.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 20,001 shares in the company, valued at $3,899,594.97. This trade represents a 12.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Robert C. Kovarik, Jr. sold 1,047 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.96% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Leidos

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ballentine Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Leidos by 3.5% during the third quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 1,822 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $297,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. Key Financial Inc lifted its position in Leidos by 6.5% during the 2nd quarter. Key Financial Inc now owns 1,141 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $166,000 after buying an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD. grew its holdings in Leidos by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD. now owns 2,280 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $372,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC increased its position in Leidos by 2.9% in the 1st quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 2,671 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $350,000 after acquiring an additional 76 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Somerset Trust Co raised its stake in shares of Leidos by 3.5% in the third quarter. Somerset Trust Co now owns 2,429 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $396,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.12% of the company’s stock.

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.