New Vernon Capital Holdings II LLC Makes New Investment in Leidos Holdings, Inc. $LDOS

Key Points

• New Vernon Capital Holdings II LLC purchased 221,437 shares of Leidos Holdings, Inc. valued at approximately $29.88 million, making it the company's 27th largest holding.
• Leidos reported $3.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the last quarter, exceeding the consensus estimate of $2.63, and announced a dividend of $0.40 per share to be paid on September 30th.
• Overall, approximately 76.12% of Leidos's stock is currently owned by institutional investors, indicating strong institutional interest.

New Vernon Capital Holdings II LLC bought a new stake in Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 221,437 shares of the aerospace company's stock, valued at approximately $29,881,000. Leidos comprises 0.1% of New Vernon Capital Holdings II LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest position. New Vernon Capital Holdings II LLC owned 0.17% of Leidos at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of LDOS. REAP Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Leidos by 422.2% in the 4th quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 188 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 152 shares during the period. MCF Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Leidos during the first quarter worth $27,000. Optimum Investment Advisors raised its holdings in Leidos by 260.0% during the first quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors now owns 234 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares during the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT acquired a new position in Leidos during the first quarter worth $33,000. Finally, N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in Leidos during the first quarter worth $54,000. 76.12% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on LDOS. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Leidos from $168.00 to $184.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Wall Street Zen cut Leidos from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Leidos from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $185.00 to $205.00 in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Citigroup reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $190.00 price target (up from $186.00) on shares of Leidos in a report on Monday, July 14th. Finally, Baird R W cut Leidos from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $183.31.

Leidos Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of NYSE:LDOS traded up $0.39 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $179.42. The company's stock had a trading volume of 162,198 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,306,959. The firm has a market cap of $23.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a quick ratio of 1.50, a current ratio of 1.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06. Leidos Holdings, Inc. has a 1 year low of $123.62 and a 1 year high of $202.90. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $170.93 and a 200 day moving average price of $153.30.

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The aerospace company reported $3.21 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.63 by $0.58. The business had revenue of $4.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.24 billion. Leidos had a return on equity of 33.57% and a net margin of 8.22%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.63 earnings per share. Leidos has set its FY 2025 guidance at 11.150-11.450 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Leidos Holdings, Inc. will post 10.62 EPS for the current year.

Leidos Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be given a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Leidos's payout ratio is currently 15.12%.

Insider Activity

In other Leidos news, insider Stephen Edward Hull sold 12,497 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $178.14, for a total transaction of $2,226,215.58. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 25,817 shares in the company, valued at $4,599,040.38. This represents a 32.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Gary Stephen May sold 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $178.05, for a total value of $356,100.00. Following the sale, the director owned 10,137 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,804,892.85. This represents a 16.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 22,975 shares of company stock valued at $4,078,740 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.69% of the company's stock.

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.