Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) Hits New 12-Month High After Analyst Upgrade

Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high on Tuesday after Barclays raised their price target on the stock from $165.00 to $210.00. Barclays currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Leidos traded as high as $188.73 and last traded at $188.12, with a volume of 139231 shares. The stock had previously closed at $186.32.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently commented on the company. TD Cowen raised their target price on Leidos from $175.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Leidos from $194.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Leidos from $180.00 to $218.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Leidos from $183.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price objective on Leidos from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Leidos presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $191.23.

Insider Activity at Leidos

In related news, Director Gary Stephen May sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.02, for a total transaction of $144,020.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 11,264 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,622,241.28. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, Director Robert C. Kovarik, Jr. sold 1,047 shares of Leidos stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 31st. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at $1,185,095.52. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Gary Stephen May sold 1,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.02, for a total transaction of $144,020.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,264 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,622,241.28. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.96% 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 stock. Private Advisor Group LLC lifted its holdings in Leidos by 3.3% during the 1st quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 5,195 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $681,000 after purchasing an additional 165 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Leidos by 10.1% in the first quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 51,115 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $6,701,000 after acquiring an additional 4,696 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its stake in Leidos by 11.6% during the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 21,172 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $2,775,000 after acquiring an additional 2,201 shares in the last quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake in Leidos by 5.3% during the first quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 4,133 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $542,000 after acquiring an additional 209 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Choreo LLC bought a new stake in Leidos during the 1st quarter worth approximately $359,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.12% of the company's stock.

Leidos Stock Up 2.0 %

The company's 50 day simple moving average is $163.68 and its 200-day simple moving average is $152.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.36 billion, a PE ratio of 21.22, a PEG ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.23.

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The aerospace company reported $2.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.96 by $0.97. The company had revenue of $4.19 billion during 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 firm's quarterly revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.03 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Leidos Holdings, Inc. will post 10.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Leidos Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th will be paid a $0.40 dividend. This is an increase from Leidos's previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.84%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. Leidos's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 17.31%.

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.