Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. Invests $549,000 in Leidos Holdings, Inc. $LDOS

Key Points

• Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. has acquired a new stake in Leidos Holdings, Inc. worth approximately $549,000, highlighting growing institutional interest in the aerospace company.
• Insider trading activity includes significant sales by Stephen Edward Hull and Gary Stephen May, which resulted in a decrease in their ownership stakes in Leidos.
• Leidos has received mixed ratings from analysts, with Jefferies upgrading the stock to a "buy" and raising the price target to $205.00, while the consensus rating remains a "Moderate Buy" with a target price of $179.46.

Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. purchased a new stake in Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm purchased 4,072 shares of the aerospace company's stock, valued at approximately $549,000.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of LDOS. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Leidos during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. REAP Financial Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Leidos by 422.2% during the 4th quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 188 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 152 shares during the last quarter. MCF Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Leidos in the first quarter valued at $27,000. Optimum Investment Advisors raised its holdings in shares of Leidos by 260.0% during the first quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors now owns 234 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 169 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Zions Bancorporation National Association UT purchased a new stake in shares of Leidos during the first quarter worth $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.12% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on LDOS shares. Baird R W lowered Leidos from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 27th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Leidos from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $185.00 to $205.00 in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $178.00 target price on shares of Leidos and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. Robert W. Baird downgraded Leidos from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $163.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, May 27th. Finally, Citigroup restated a "buy" rating and issued a $190.00 price objective (up previously from $186.00) on shares of Leidos in a report on Monday, July 14th. One investment 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $179.46.

Leidos Trading Up 0.1%

LDOS traded up $0.2250 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $178.3450. 325,609 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,369,072. The company has a quick ratio of 1.50, a current ratio of 1.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.88 billion, a PE ratio of 16.86, a P/E/G ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.65. The stock's 50-day moving average is $161.64 and its 200 day moving average is $148.46. Leidos Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $123.62 and a 12 month high of $202.90.

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

Leidos Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Gary Stephen May sold 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, 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 completion of the transaction, the director owned 21,068 shares of the company's stock, 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. Insiders have sold 10,478 shares of company stock valued at $1,852,525 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.69% of the company's stock.

Leidos 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.