Erste Asset Management GmbH Buys 119,100 Shares of Leonardo DRS, Inc. $DRS

Key Points

• Erste Asset Management GmbH boosted its stake in Leonardo DRS by 503.6% in the fourth quarter, adding 119,100 shares to bring its total holdings to 142,750 shares worth about $4.87 million.
• Insider selling picked up recently, with CFO Michael Dippold and EVP Sally Wallace both trimming their positions; insiders have sold 76,089 shares over the last three months.
• Leonardo DRS reported better-than-expected quarterly results, posting EPS of $0.26 versus $0.21 expected and revenue of $846 million, while analysts remain cautiously positive with a Moderate Buy consensus and an average target price of $52.

Erste Asset Management GmbH increased its stake in Leonardo DRS, Inc. (NASDAQ:DRS - Free Report) by 503.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 142,750 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 119,100 shares during the period. Erste Asset Management GmbH owned about 0.05% of Leonardo DRS worth $4,872,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Leonardo DRS by 24.8% in the 4th quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC now owns 1,020,223 shares of the company's stock valued at $34,779,000 after acquiring an additional 202,758 shares during the last quarter. Swedbank AB lifted its stake in shares of Leonardo DRS by 1,026.0% in the 4th quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 96,205 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,280,000 after acquiring an additional 87,661 shares during the last quarter. AXQ Capital LP lifted its stake in shares of Leonardo DRS by 301.6% in the 4th quarter. AXQ Capital LP now owns 44,872 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,530,000 after acquiring an additional 33,699 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Leonardo DRS by 116.8% in the 3rd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 3,661,214 shares of the company's stock valued at $166,219,000 after acquiring an additional 1,972,596 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Magnetar Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Leonardo DRS in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,362,000. Institutional investors own 18.76% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other Leonardo DRS news, CFO Michael Dippold sold 16,330 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.27, for a total transaction of $739,259.10. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 26,622 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,205,177.94. This represents a 38.02% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Sally Wallace sold 28,960 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.35, for a total value of $1,342,296.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 58,353 shares in the company, valued at $2,704,661.55. This trade represents a 33.17% decrease in their position. 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. In the last three months, insiders have sold 76,089 shares of company stock worth $3,491,236. Company insiders own 0.25% of the company's stock.

Leonardo DRS Stock Up 1.7%

Shares of NASDAQ:DRS opened at $47.35 on Wednesday. Leonardo DRS, Inc. has a 1 year low of $32.43 and a 1 year high of $49.31. The stock's 50-day moving average is $44.38 and its 200 day moving average is $41.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a current ratio of 1.86 and a quick ratio of 1.52. The company has a market cap of $12.63 billion, a PE ratio of 44.25, a P/E/G ratio of 3.36 and a beta of 0.34.

Leonardo DRS (NASDAQ:DRS - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The company reported $0.26 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.21 by $0.05. Leonardo DRS had a return on equity of 12.02% and a net margin of 7.85%.The firm had revenue of $846.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $825.05 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.20 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. Leonardo DRS has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.260-1.300 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Leonardo DRS, Inc. will post 1.3 EPS for the current year.

Leonardo DRS Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 19th were issued a dividend of $0.09 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 19th. This represents a $0.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Leonardo DRS's dividend payout ratio is 33.64%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on DRS shares. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price target on Leonardo DRS from $52.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Bank of America boosted their price target on Leonardo DRS from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 25th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Leonardo DRS from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Friday. Morgan Stanley set a $47.00 price target on Leonardo DRS in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Finally, Truist Financial upgraded Leonardo DRS to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Leonardo DRS presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $52.00.

Leonardo DRS Company Profile

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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