Zacks Research Has Pessimistic View of Leidos Q4 Earnings

Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS) – Zacks Research reduced their Q4 2024 EPS estimates for shares of Leidos in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday, November 19th. Zacks Research analyst A. Dutta now anticipates that the aerospace company will post earnings per share of $2.01 for the quarter, down from their previous estimate of $2.02. The consensus estimate for Leidos’ current full-year earnings is $10.07 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Leidos’ Q1 2025 earnings at $2.33 EPS, Q2 2025 earnings at $2.51 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $2.50 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $2.60 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $9.94 EPS and Q2 2026 earnings at $2.73 EPS.

Several other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on LDOS. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Leidos from $165.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Leidos from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of Leidos from $175.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Leidos from $145.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Leidos from $183.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Two investment 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. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $191.23.

Leidos Price Performance

LDOS stock opened at $165.11 on Thursday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $169.94 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $155.93. Leidos has a 12-month low of $105.50 and a 12-month high of $202.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.47, a PEG ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 0.68. 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 (NYSE:LDOS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The aerospace company reported $2.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.96 by $0.97. The business had revenue of $4.19 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.06 billion. Leidos had a net margin of 7.37% and a return on equity of 30.31%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.03 earnings per share.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Leidos

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of LDOS. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Leidos in the 1st quarter worth about $261,000. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Leidos by 9.3% in the 1st quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 16,861 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $2,210,000 after acquiring an additional 1,437 shares during the last quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Leidos by 478.2% in the 1st quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd now owns 8,748 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,147,000 after acquiring an additional 7,235 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Leidos by 95.8% during the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 12,074 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,583,000 after buying an additional 5,906 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lake Street Advisors Group LLC bought a new stake in Leidos during the 1st quarter valued at about $307,000. Institutional investors own 76.12% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Robert C. Kovarik, Jr. sold 1,047 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 directly owns 6,408 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,185,095.52. This represents a 14.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Surya N. Mohapatra sold 2,748 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.97, for a total transaction of $535,777.56. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 20,001 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,899,594.97. The trade was a 12.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.96% of the company’s stock.

Leidos Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be given a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 16th. This is an increase from Leidos’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.97%. Leidos’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.31%.

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.