Bank of Nova Scotia Makes New Investment in Leonardo DRS, Inc. $DRS

Key Points

• Bank of Nova Scotia acquired 56,300 Leonardo DRS shares worth approximately $2.4 million in the second quarter. Other major institutional investors, including BlackRock, AQR Capital Management and Stephens Investment Management, also increased or initiated positions.
• Leonardo DRS exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting EPS of $0.35 versus the $0.27 consensus and revenue of $913 million, up 10.1% year over year. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $53.60.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.09 per share, equivalent to a $0.36 annualized payout and a 0.9% yield. Meanwhile, insiders sold 57,683 shares worth about $2.65 million over the past 90 days, primarily through pre-arranged trading plans.

Bank of Nova Scotia acquired a new position in shares of Leonardo DRS, Inc. (NASDAQ:DRS - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 56,300 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,402,000.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Leonardo DRS by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,717,551 shares of the company's stock worth $263,091,000 after purchasing an additional 34,858 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in Leonardo DRS in the second quarter valued at approximately $212,883,000. State Street Corp increased its stake in Leonardo DRS by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,988,403 shares of the company's stock valued at $135,965,000 after purchasing an additional 153,697 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Leonardo DRS by 77.1% during the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,255,400 shares of the company's stock worth $76,887,000 after purchasing an additional 981,956 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Stephens Investment Management Group LLC raised its holdings in Leonardo DRS by 107.6% during the first quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC now owns 2,118,331 shares of the company's stock worth $94,308,000 after purchasing an additional 1,098,108 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 18.76% of the company's stock.

Leonardo DRS Price Performance

DRS stock opened at $38.60 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $10.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.44, a PEG ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 0.35. Leonardo DRS, Inc. has a twelve month low of $32.43 and a twelve month high of $50.59. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $44.40 and a 200-day simple moving average of $44.21. The company has a current ratio of 1.92, a quick ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05.

Leonardo DRS (NASDAQ:DRS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Friday, July 31st. The company reported $0.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.27 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $913.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $903.27 million. Leonardo DRS had a net margin of 8.52% and a return on equity of 12.97%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.23 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Leonardo DRS, Inc. will post 1.39 EPS for the current year.

Leonardo DRS Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 27th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 13th will be given a dividend of $0.09 per share. This represents a $0.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 13th. Leonardo DRS's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.25%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on DRS shares. Truist Financial upgraded shares of Leonardo DRS to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Leonardo DRS from $48.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Leonardo DRS from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their price objective on shares of Leonardo DRS from $52.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Leonardo DRS from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Sunday, May 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Leonardo DRS presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $53.60.

Insider Buying and Selling at Leonardo DRS

In other Leonardo DRS news, CEO John Baylouny sold 36,471 shares of Leonardo DRS stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.67, for a total value of $1,665,630.57. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 122,435 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,591,606.45. The trade was a 22.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Sally Wallace sold 1,300 shares of Leonardo DRS stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total transaction of $65,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 57,053 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,852,650. This represents a 2.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 57,683 shares of company stock valued at $2,650,769. Company insiders own 0.25% of the company's stock.

About Leonardo DRS

Leonardo DRS is a U.S.-based defense technology company and wholly owned subsidiary of Italy's Leonardo S.p.A. The firm specializes in developing and integrating mission-critical systems for military and government customers, with a primary focus on command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (C4ISR). Its core offerings encompass advanced sensors, targeting systems, radars and electronic warfare solutions designed to enhance situational awareness and operational effectiveness across land, sea and air domains.

The company's portfolio includes naval combat management systems, unmanned vehicle sensors, power generation and distribution equipment, and training and simulation solutions.

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