Systematic Financial Management LP Boosts Position in Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS)

Systematic Financial Management LP grew its position in shares of Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS - Free Report) by 2.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 184,330 shares of the aerospace company's stock after acquiring an additional 4,372 shares during the quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP owned 0.14% of Leidos worth $30,046,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of LDOS. Rakuten Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Leidos by 1,460.0% in the 3rd quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 156 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 146 shares during the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Leidos in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new stake in Leidos in the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. 1832 Asset Management L.P. bought a new stake in Leidos in the 2nd quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in Leidos by 251.3% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 281 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 201 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.12% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on LDOS. TD Cowen increased their target price on Leidos from $175.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Leidos from $230.00 to $205.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on Leidos from $205.00 to $228.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on Leidos from $180.00 to $218.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on Leidos from $145.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $187.36.

Leidos Price Performance

Shares of NYSE LDOS traded down $1.30 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $163.76. 1,240,765 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 939,778. The company has a market capitalization of $21.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 0.64. Leidos Holdings, Inc. has a 52-week low of $105.52 and a 52-week high of $202.90. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $171.64 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $157.22. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87.

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The aerospace company reported $2.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.96 by $0.97. The firm had revenue of $4.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.06 billion. Leidos had a return on equity of 30.31% and a net margin of 7.37%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.03 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Leidos Holdings, Inc. will post 10.04 EPS for the current year.

Leidos Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 16th. This is a positive change from Leidos's previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.98%. Leidos's payout ratio is currently 17.31%.

Insider Activity at Leidos

In other news, Director Surya N. Mohapatra sold 2,748 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $194.97, for a total value of $535,777.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 20,001 shares in the company, valued at $3,899,594.97. The trade was a 12.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Robert C. Kovarik, Jr. sold 1,047 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $184.94, for a total value of $193,632.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 6,408 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,185,095.52. This represents a 14.04 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.96% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Leidos Company Profile

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.