Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS) Stock Has Consensus Price Target of $160.29

Shares of Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS) have earned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the seventeen ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $156.14.

Several research firms have recently issued reports on LDOS. TD Cowen decreased their price target on Leidos from $135.00 to $130.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. UBS Group raised their price objective on Leidos from $124.00 to $138.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price objective on Leidos from $180.00 to $170.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Bank of America boosted their target price on Leidos from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, September 18th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane upped their target price on Leidos from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th.

Leidos Trading Up 2.1%

Shares of NYSE:LDOS opened at $121.78 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.28 billion, a PE ratio of 11.36, a P/E/G ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 0.58. Leidos has a 1 year low of $98.86 and a 1 year high of $205.77. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $131.25 and a 200 day moving average price of $129.39. The company has a current ratio of 1.63, a quick ratio of 1.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13.

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) last posted its earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The aerospace company reported $3.26 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 firm had revenue of $4.56 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.44 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.21 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Leidos will post 12.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Leidos Dividend Announcement

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

Leidos announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Friday, July 31st that permits the company to repurchase 20,000,000 shares. This repurchase authorization permits the aerospace company to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Leidos

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Leidos

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of LDOS. Kaizen Financial Strategies bought a new position in shares of Leidos in the third quarter worth about $212,000. Wedmont Private Capital acquired a new position in shares of Leidos during the 3rd quarter worth about $202,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in Leidos by 50.6% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,849 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $591,000 after purchasing an additional 1,629 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Leidos by 6.2% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 6,218 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $758,000 after purchasing an additional 362 shares during the period. Finally, Atwood & Palmer Inc. boosted its stake in Leidos by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. Atwood & Palmer Inc. now owns 267,358 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $32,572,000 after purchasing an additional 8,376 shares during the period. 76.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Leidos Company Profile

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.