Franklin Resources Inc. Has $81.94 Million Stock Holdings in Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS)

Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS - Free Report) by 64.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 568,765 shares of the aerospace company's stock after acquiring an additional 222,075 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. owned approximately 0.43% of Leidos worth $81,936,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Private Advisor Group LLC raised its stake in Leidos by 83.0% in the 4th quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 8,167 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $1,177,000 after acquiring an additional 3,703 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Leidos by 39.6% in 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. LGT Fund Management Co Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Leidos in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,979,000. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of Leidos during the 3rd quarter worth about $4,622,000. Finally, HM Payson & Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Leidos by 959.8% during the 4th quarter. HM Payson & Co. now owns 2,374 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $342,000 after buying an additional 2,150 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 76.12% of the company's stock.

Leidos Price Performance

Shares of LDOS stock traded up $3.45 on Tuesday, hitting $136.35. 455,207 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,632,388. The company has a 50 day moving average of $135.48 and a 200 day moving average of $152.88. The stock has a market cap of $17.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.66. 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 Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $123.22 and a 12 month high of $202.90.

Remove Ads

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The aerospace company reported $2.37 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.24 by $0.13. Leidos had a net margin of 7.53% and a return on equity of 30.93%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Leidos Holdings, Inc. will post 10.62 EPS for the current year.

Leidos Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.17%. Leidos's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.32%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Robert C. Kovarik, Jr. sold 1,511 shares of Leidos stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $134.56, for a total transaction 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. This trade represents a 19.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Gary Stephen May sold 2,128 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $131.24, for a total value of $279,278.72. Following the sale, the director now owns 11,264 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,478,287.36. This trade represents a 15.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.96% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on LDOS. Truist Financial reduced their price objective on Leidos from $185.00 to $165.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. TD Cowen lowered Leidos from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $200.00 to $165.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Leidos from $197.00 to $191.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Leidos from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, William Blair cut shares of Leidos from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $178.07.

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.