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

Key Points

• Analysts maintain a “Hold” consensus on Leidos, with 10 hold, six buy, and one strong-buy rating. The average 12-month price target is $160.29, above the reported share price of $119.43.
• Leidos exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $3.26 EPS versus a $2.91 consensus estimate and $4.56 billion in revenue, up 7.2% year over year. Analysts project full-year EPS of $12.28.
• The company is returning capital through a $0.43 quarterly dividend and a newly authorized 20 million-share repurchase program; institutional investors own 76.12% of outstanding shares.

Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS - Get Free Report) has been given a consensus rating of "Hold" by the seventeen analysts that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 1-year price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $160.29.

Several brokerages recently issued reports on LDOS. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Leidos from $138.00 to $161.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price target on Leidos from $180.00 to $170.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. TD Cowen reissued a "hold" rating and set a $135.00 price target on shares of Leidos in a research note on Tuesday, September 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Leidos from $210.00 to $160.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 13th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $150.00 price objective on Leidos in a report on Wednesday, August 5th.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Gary May sold 1,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.85, for a total value of $140,850.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 10,204 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,437,233.40. This trade represents a 8.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Noel B. Geer sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 owned 34,274 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,820,980.84. The trade was a 22.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.77% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Leidos

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in Leidos during the 2nd quarter worth $1,024,436,000. Diamant Asset Management Inc. raised its position in Leidos by 16,475.4% in the first quarter. Diamant Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,156,784 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $646,463,000 after purchasing an additional 4,131,706 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its stake in shares of Leidos by 998.6% during the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 1,097,724 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $170,718,000 after purchasing an additional 997,807 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new position in shares of Leidos during the second quarter worth about $77,623,000. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG acquired a new position in shares of Leidos during the second quarter worth about $68,998,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.12% of the company's stock.

Leidos Stock Up 1.4%

LDOS opened at $119.43 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $14.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.14, a PEG ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 0.58. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $131.05 and its 200 day simple moving average is $130.49. Leidos has a 52 week low of $98.86 and a 52 week high of $205.77. The company has a quick ratio of 1.60, a current ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13.

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The aerospace company reported $3.26 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.91 by $0.35. The firm had revenue of $4.56 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.44 billion. Leidos had a net margin of 7.80% and a return on equity of 30.81%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.21 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Leidos will post 12.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Leidos Announces Dividend

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

Leidos announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Friday, July 31st that allows the company to repurchase 20,000,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the aerospace company to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

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.

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