Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) Cut to Neutral at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered shares of Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) from an overweight rating to a neutral rating in a research report report published on Thursday morning, MarketBeat.com reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has $142.00 price target on the aerospace company’s stock, down from their prior price target of $160.00.

Other analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Wells Fargo & Company set a $165.00 target price on Leidos in a research report on Monday, August 17th. Wall Street Zen raised Leidos from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Bank of America upped their price target on Leidos from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, September 18th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on Leidos from $145.00 to $130.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, TD Cowen decreased their price objective on Leidos from $135.00 to $130.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Leidos presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $156.14.

Leidos Stock Performance

Leidos stock opened at $121.78 on Thursday. Leidos has a fifty-two week low of $98.86 and a fifty-two week high of $205.77. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $131.25 and its 200-day simple moving average is $129.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.63 and a quick ratio of 1.60. The company has a market cap of $15.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 0.58.

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The aerospace company reported $3.26 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.91 by $0.35. Leidos had a net margin of 7.80% and a return on equity of 30.81%. The business had revenue of $4.56 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.44 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.21 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Leidos will post 12.39 EPS for the current year.

Leidos declared that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Friday, July 31st that authorizes the company to buy back 20,000,000 shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the aerospace company to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Share repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Leidos Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th were issued a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 15th. Leidos’s payout ratio is currently 16.04%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Leidos

In related news, Director Noel Geer sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.66, for a total transaction of $1,406,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 34,274 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,820,980.84. This trade represents a 22.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Gary May sold 1,000 shares of Leidos stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.85, for a total value of $140,850.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 10,204 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,437,233.40. The trade was a 8.93% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.77% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Leidos

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in Leidos in the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Longview Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Leidos in the first quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Manchester Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Leidos by 6,366.7% in the fourth quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 194 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 191 shares during the last quarter. South Plains Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Leidos in the fourth quarter worth approximately $46,000. Finally, SHP Wealth Management bought a new stake in Leidos in the fourth quarter worth approximately $49,000. 76.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Leidos

Leidos Holdings, Inc is a technology, engineering and services company that provides solutions to government and commercial customers. The company operates primarily in the defense, intelligence, civil and health markets, supporting customers with mission-critical systems, digital modernization, cybersecurity, data analytics and technical services.

Its offerings include defense and intelligence technologies, command-and-control systems, transportation and infrastructure solutions, health information technology, aviation and security services, and scientific and engineering support.