Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. Acquires 7,795 Shares of Leidos Holdings, Inc. $LDOS

Key Points

• Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. has increased its position in Leidos Holdings, Inc. by 40.8% in Q1, totaling $3.63 million and 26,908 shares held.
• Institutional investors own 76.12% of Leidos stock, with notable increases in holdings reported by JPMorgan Chase and Massachusetts Financial Services Co.
• Leidos reported a better-than-expected quarterly earnings with an EPS of $3.21, exceeding estimates, and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.40 per share.

Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. raised its position in Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS - Free Report) by 40.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 26,908 shares of the aerospace company's stock after purchasing an additional 7,795 shares during the period. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Leidos were worth $3,631,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Leidos during the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. REAP Financial Group LLC grew its position in shares of Leidos by 422.2% during the fourth quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 188 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 152 shares in the last quarter. MCF Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Leidos during the first quarter worth approximately $27,000. Optimum Investment Advisors grew its position 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 buying an additional 169 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Zions Bancorporation National Association UT acquired a new stake in shares of Leidos during the first quarter worth approximately $33,000. 76.12% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

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

Leidos Stock Down 0.1%

LDOS traded down $0.1810 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $181.5590. 295,607 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,351,426. Leidos Holdings, Inc. has a one year low of $123.62 and a one year high of $202.90. The company has a market cap of $23.29 billion, a PE ratio of 17.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.62 and a quick ratio of 1.50. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $164.28 and its 200-day simple moving average is $149.55.

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

Leidos Announces Dividend

The company 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 $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. Leidos's payout ratio is currently 15.12%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently commented on LDOS shares. Stifel Nicolaus set a $178.00 price target on shares of Leidos and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. Citigroup reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $190.00 price target (up previously from $186.00) on shares of Leidos in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on shares of Leidos from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Leidos from $168.00 to $184.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, Baird R W lowered shares of Leidos from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 27th. 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 MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $179.46.

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.