AE Wealth Management LLC Makes New $214,000 Investment in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:KTOS)

Key Points

• AE Wealth Management LLC has made a new investment in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, acquiring 7,214 shares valued at approximately $214,000 during the 1st quarter.
• Kratos reported a profit of $0.12 per share for the last quarter, exceeding expectations, alongside a revenue increase of 9.2% year-over-year.
• Several institutional investors have significantly increased their positions in Kratos, with 75.92% of the company's stock now owned by institutional and hedge funds.

AE Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:KTOS - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 7,214 shares of the aerospace company's stock, valued at approximately $214,000.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Legato Capital Management LLC raised its position in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 2.8% in the first quarter. Legato Capital Management LLC now owns 105,432 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $3,130,000 after purchasing an additional 2,900 shares during the period. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH purchased a new stake in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions during the 1st quarter valued at about $4,563,000. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky purchased a new stake in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions during the 1st quarter valued at about $1,315,000. Montag A & Associates Inc. raised its stake in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 3.8% during the first quarter. Montag A & Associates Inc. now owns 12,449 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $370,000 after purchasing an additional 450 shares during the period. Finally, Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 150.0% during the first quarter. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC now owns 25,000 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $742,000 after purchasing an additional 15,000 shares during the period. 75.92% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on KTOS shares. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. JMP Securities set a $70.00 price target on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions and gave the stock a "market outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Truist Financial lifted their target price on Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $38.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, June 27th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $38.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 3rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $52.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Monday, June 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Kratos Defense & Security Solutions currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $50.08.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:KTOS traded down $1.99 during trading on Friday, reaching $56.71. 4,796,199 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,722,225. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 2.84 and a quick ratio of 2.26. Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. has a 12 month low of $17.91 and a 12 month high of $61.43. The company has a 50 day moving average of $46.47 and a 200-day moving average of $36.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 436.26 and a beta of 1.04.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions (NASDAQ:KTOS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The aerospace company reported $0.12 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.09 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $302.60 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $292.25 million. Kratos Defense & Security Solutions had a return on equity of 3.85% and a net margin of 1.68%. The firm's revenue was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.11 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. will post 0.31 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Kratos Defense & Security Solutions

In related news, insider Jonah Adelman sold 40,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.76, for a total transaction of $1,350,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 39,348 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,328,388.48. This trade represents a 50.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Steven S. Fendley sold 15,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.37, for a total transaction of $515,550.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 384,492 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $13,214,990.04. This trade represents a 3.75% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 145,572 shares of company stock worth $5,644,656 in the last quarter. 2.37% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions Company Profile

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc engages in the provision of mission critical products, services and solutions for United States national security priorities. It operates through the Kratos Government Solutions (KGS) and Unmanned Systems (US) segments. The KGS segment consists of an aggregation of KGS operating segments, including microwave electronic products, space, satellite and cyber, training solutions.