Naples Global Advisors LLC Sells 2,242 Shares of Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS)

Naples Global Advisors LLC reduced its stake in shares of Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS - Free Report) by 4.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 53,283 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 2,242 shares during the quarter. Naples Global Advisors LLC's holdings in Leidos were worth $7,676,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its holdings in Leidos by 39.9% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 841,479 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $121,223,000 after buying an additional 239,846 shares during the period. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Leidos in the 4th quarter valued at $333,000. Wealthcare Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Leidos in the 4th quarter valued at $439,000. Axecap Investments LLC raised its stake in shares of Leidos by 19.6% in the 4th quarter. Axecap Investments LLC now owns 28,502 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $4,106,000 after buying an additional 4,661 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC raised its stake in shares of Leidos by 129.8% in the 4th quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 6,733 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $970,000 after buying an additional 3,803 shares in the last quarter. 76.12% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Leidos Trading Up 1.2 %

Shares of NYSE LDOS traded up $1.57 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $132.22. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,752,327 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,277,481. The stock has a market cap of $17.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 1.23 and a quick ratio of 1.15. Leidos Holdings, Inc. has a one year low of $120.98 and a one year high of $202.90. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $146.93 and its 200-day simple moving average is $157.23.

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The aerospace company reported $2.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.24 by $0.13. Leidos had a net margin of 7.37% and a return on equity of 30.31%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Leidos Holdings, Inc. will post 10.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Leidos Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Leidos's payout ratio is 18.22%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Noel B. Geer bought 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $161.13 per share, for a total transaction of $322,260.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 2,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $322,260. This represents a ∞ increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Robert C. Kovarik, Jr. sold 1,511 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 owns 6,408 shares in the company, valued at $862,260.48. This trade represents a 19.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.96% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald assumed coverage on shares of Leidos in a research note on Friday, February 7th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $185.00 price objective for the company. TD Cowen cut shares of Leidos from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $200.00 to $165.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Leidos from $199.00 to $197.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. StockNews.com cut shares of Leidos from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group cut shares of Leidos from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $228.00 to $153.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $176.27.

Leidos 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.