Allianz SE Reduces Stake in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:KTOS)

Key Points

• Allianz SE has significantly reduced its stake in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, selling 47,099 shares for a total ownership decrease of 95.2%, leaving it with 2,363 shares valued at approximately $70,000.
• The CEO of Kratos Defense, Eric M. Demarco, purchased 7,455 shares valued at around $250,413, while another insider Steven S. Fendley sold 15,000 shares for $515,550.
• Research analysts have a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" for Kratos Defense, with a target price averaging $50.08 following multiple upgrades from firms such as Truist Financial and Stifel Nicolaus.

Allianz SE lessened its stake in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:KTOS - Free Report) by 95.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,363 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 47,099 shares during the quarter. Allianz SE's holdings in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions were worth $70,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Montag A & Associates Inc. grew its holdings in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 3.8% during the 1st quarter. Montag A & Associates Inc. now owns 12,449 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $370,000 after buying an additional 450 shares during the last quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. grew its holdings in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 5.6% during the 1st quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. now owns 8,975 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $266,000 after buying an additional 475 shares during the last quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 15,479 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $408,000 after buying an additional 490 shares during the last quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 3.0% during the 1st quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC now owns 17,441 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $518,000 after buying an additional 506 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV grew its holdings in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 9.5% during the 1st quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 6,993 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $208,000 after buying an additional 607 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.92% of the company's stock.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions Price Performance

Shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions stock opened at $59.50 on Tuesday. Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. has a twelve month low of $17.91 and a twelve month high of $61.43. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 457.73 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a current ratio of 2.84, a quick ratio of 2.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. The business's fifty day moving average price is $46.47 and its 200 day moving average price is $36.80.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions (NASDAQ:KTOS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The aerospace company reported $0.12 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.09 by $0.03. Kratos Defense & Security Solutions had a return on equity of 3.85% and a net margin of 1.68%. The firm had revenue of $302.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $292.25 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.11 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. will post 0.31 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Eric M. Demarco acquired 7,455 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 12th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $33.59 per share, with a total value of $250,413.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,396,237 shares of the company's stock, valued at $46,899,600.83. This trade represents a 0.54% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed 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 value of $515,550.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 384,492 shares in the company, valued at $13,214,990.04. This trade represents a 3.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 145,572 shares of company stock valued at $5,644,656 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 2.37% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a report on Friday, July 18th. Truist Financial raised their price objective on Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $38.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, June 27th. Noble Financial restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a report on Monday, July 14th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $54.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $38.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $50.08.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions 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.

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