First Trust Advisors LP Reduces Stock Position in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. $KTOS

First Trust Advisors LP trimmed its stake in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:KTOS - Free Report) by 5.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,701,765 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 150,244 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP owned about 1.44% of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions worth $190,501,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Mcguire Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp increased its stake in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 7,600.0% during the 4th quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp now owns 385 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 380 shares in the last quarter. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp lifted its stake in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 115.4% in the 4th quarter. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp now owns 420 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 225 shares in the last quarter. Vision Retirement LLC grew its holdings in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 288.2% during the 1st quarter. Vision Retirement LLC now owns 427 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 317 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new position in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions during the fourth quarter worth $37,000. 75.92% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Kratos Defense & Security Solutions this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Kratos won an approximately $156 million sole-source, single-award IDIQ contract from the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration Office of Secure Transportation to supply mobile counter-unmanned aircraft systems for “Project Solar Shield,” a meaningful revenue boost and validation of its defense technology. Article title
• Positive Sentiment: Several news items highlighted Kratos as one of the leading drone-defense and aerospace contractors, suggesting investors are focused on its exposure to rising global defense spending and growing demand for counter-drone systems. Article title
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst-style pieces compared KTOS with peers like L3Harris and Ondas, but these were more valuation and strategy debates than new company-specific catalysts. Article title
• Neutral Sentiment: One valuation-focused article said Kratos looks fairly valued on cash flow but expensive on sales, which may temper some upside enthusiasm but does not change the core contract-driven momentum. Article title
• Neutral Sentiment: Broader defense-sector coverage pointed to strong drone demand across the industry, reinforcing the theme behind KTOS’s move rather than adding a separate catalyst. Article title

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price objective on Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $100.00 to $80.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $82.00 target price on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a report on Thursday, May 7th. BNP Paribas Exane lifted their price target on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Truist Financial raised shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $100.00 to $89.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Kratos Defense & Security Solutions currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $101.29.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kratos Defense & Security Solutions

In other Kratos Defense & Security Solutions news, insider Steven S. Fendley sold 35,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.23, for a total transaction of $2,038,050.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 309,087 shares in the company, valued at $17,998,136.01. The trade was a 10.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Phillip D. Carrai sold 6,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.13, for a total value of $338,845.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 221,550 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,549,401.50. This represents a 2.85% 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. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 148,036 shares of company stock worth $8,455,857. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions Stock Performance

NASDAQ:KTOS opened at $47.89 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 5.08, a current ratio of 5.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The company has a market cap of $8.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 281.71 and a beta of 1.07. Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $45.58 and a fifty-two week high of $134.00. The firm's 50 day moving average is $53.77 and its two-hundred day moving average is $75.14.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions (NASDAQ:KTOS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The aerospace company reported $0.16 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.13 by $0.03. Kratos Defense & Security Solutions had a return on equity of 2.82% and a net margin of 2.08%.The business had revenue of $371.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $345.00 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.12 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 22.6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. will post 0.48 EPS for the current year.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions Company Profile

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc NASDAQ: KTOS is a technology-driven company that specializes in national security and defense solutions for government and military customers. The firm’s core capabilities span unmanned systems, satellite communications, missile defense, cyber security, and directed-energy weapons. Through its integrated approach, Kratos delivers mission-critical products and services designed to enhance operational readiness and support force modernization initiatives.

In the unmanned systems arena, Kratos develops high-performance aerial platforms used as target drones, low-cost attritable aircraft and experimental stealth demonstrators.

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