Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec Lowers Position in Leidos Holdings, Inc. $LDOS

Key Points

• Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec reduced its stake in Leidos Holdings, Inc. by 68.9%, selling 66,515 shares and now holding a total of 30,063 shares valued at approximately $4.06 million.
• A number of other institutional investors have increased their positions in Leidos, including Pacer Advisors Inc. which saw a 3,450.0% growth, adding significant shares during the first quarter.
• Leidos recently reported earnings of $3.21 per share, exceeding the consensus estimate, and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.40 per share, payable on September 30th.

Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec lessened its stake in Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS - Free Report) by 68.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 30,063 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 66,515 shares during the quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec's holdings in Leidos were worth $4,057,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

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

Leidos Trading Down 0.3%

LDOS stock traded down $0.48 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $180.88. 671,024 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 889,780. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 1.50 and a current ratio of 1.62. Leidos Holdings, Inc. has a one year low of $123.62 and a one year high of $202.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.21 billion, a PE ratio of 17.10, a PEG ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.71. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $167.62 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $151.08.

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

Leidos Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $190.00 price target (up previously from $186.00) on shares of Leidos in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Leidos from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price target for the company from $185.00 to $205.00 in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. Baird R W downgraded shares of Leidos from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 27th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Leidos from $168.00 to $184.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Leidos from $173.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $179.46.

Insider Transactions at Leidos

In other news, Director Gary Stephen May sold 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $178.05, for a total value of $356,100.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 10,137 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,804,892.85. This represents a 16.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Gregory R. Dahlberg sold 952 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $177.43, for a total transaction of $168,913.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 21,068 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,738,095.24. The trade was a 4.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 10,478 shares of company stock worth $1,852,525. Insiders own 0.69% of the company's stock.

About Leidos

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.