Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) Stock Rating Upgraded by StockNews.com

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) was upgraded by equities researchers at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday.

A number of other brokerages have also issued reports on LDOS. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Leidos from $199.00 to $197.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. TD Cowen lowered Leidos from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $200.00 to $165.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. UBS Group decreased their price target on Leidos from $162.00 to $156.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Leidos from $145.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded Leidos from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $228.00 to $153.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Leidos has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $176.27.

Leidos Stock Performance

Shares of LDOS stock opened at $131.47 on Thursday. Leidos has a 12-month low of $122.76 and a 12-month high of $202.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 0.66. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $145.79 and a 200 day simple moving average of $157.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.21 and a quick ratio of 1.13.

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The aerospace company reported $2.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.24 by $0.13. Leidos had a return on equity of 30.93% and a net margin of 7.53%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Leidos will post 10.62 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Gary Stephen May sold 2,128 shares of Leidos stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $131.24, for a total transaction of $279,278.72. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 11,264 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,478,287.36. This trade represents a 15.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Robert C. Kovarik, Jr. sold 1,511 shares of Leidos stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $134.56, for a total value of $203,320.16. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 6,408 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $862,260.48. The trade was a 19.08 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.96% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Leidos

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its position in Leidos by 39.6% during the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 12,464 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,800,000 after purchasing an additional 3,534 shares during the last quarter. Fiduciary Trust Co raised its holdings in Leidos by 36.4% during the third quarter. Fiduciary Trust Co now owns 23,941 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $3,902,000 after buying an additional 6,395 shares in the last quarter. Atria Investments Inc raised its holdings in Leidos by 100.1% during the third quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 8,837 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,440,000 after buying an additional 4,421 shares in the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Leidos by 21.4% during the third quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 55,165 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $8,992,000 after buying an additional 9,710 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. bought a new position in Leidos during the third quarter valued at about $4,622,000. 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.