AQR Capital Management LLC Purchases 34,328 Shares of Leidos Holdings, Inc. $LDOS

Key Points

• AQR Capital Management LLC has increased its holdings in Leidos Holdings, Inc. by 3.0%, purchasing an additional 34,328 shares to bring its total ownership to approximately $159.34 million.
• Leidos announced a quarterly dividend of $0.40 per share, which will be paid on September 30th to investors of record on September 15th, representing a 0.9% yield.
• The company's stock, currently priced at $177.44, has experienced a 1.9% decline recently and has a market cap of $22.77 billion.

AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS - Free Report) by 3.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,183,157 shares of the aerospace company's stock after acquiring an additional 34,328 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC owned about 0.92% of Leidos worth $159,342,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of LDOS. REAP Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in Leidos by 422.2% during the 4th quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 188 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 152 shares during the period. MCF Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Leidos during the 1st quarter worth about $27,000. Optimum Investment Advisors lifted its holdings in Leidos by 260.0% during the 1st quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors now owns 234 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 169 shares during the period. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT acquired a new position in Leidos during the 1st quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in Leidos during the 1st quarter worth about $54,000. Institutional investors own 76.12% of the company's stock.

Leidos Stock Down 1.9%

LDOS stock opened at $177.44 on Thursday. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $169.26 and its 200 day simple moving average is $151.81. Leidos Holdings, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $123.62 and a fifty-two week high of $202.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 1.50 and a current ratio of 1.62. The company has a market cap of $22.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.71.

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

Leidos Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LDOS has been the topic of several recent research reports. Robert W. Baird downgraded Leidos from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $163.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, May 27th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Leidos from $168.00 to $184.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Leidos from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $185.00 to $205.00 in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Leidos from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Leidos from $173.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $179.46.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Gregory R. Dahlberg sold 952 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $177.43, for a total transaction of $168,913.36. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 21,068 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,738,095.24. This represents a 4.32% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Stephen Edward Hull sold 7,526 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $176.39, for a total value of $1,327,511.14. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 26,481 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,670,983.59. This trade represents a 22.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 10,478 shares of company stock valued at $1,852,525. 0.69% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.

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