Hsbc Holdings PLC Boosts Stock Position in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. $KTOS

Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its position in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:KTOS - Free Report) by 187.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 47,566 shares of the aerospace company's stock after purchasing an additional 31,031 shares during the quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC's holdings in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions were worth $3,321,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of KTOS. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its position in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 245.2% in the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 601,674 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $45,673,000 after purchasing an additional 427,396 shares in the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp increased its position in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 6,900.4% during the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 176,831 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $13,423,000 after buying an additional 174,305 shares in the last quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 435.1% in the fourth quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 43,011 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $3,265,000 after acquiring an additional 34,973 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 65.2% during the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 714,083 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $54,206,000 after acquiring an additional 281,811 shares during the last quarter. Finally, B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG acquired a new position in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions during the fourth quarter valued at about $1,821,000. 75.92% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions Price Performance

NASDAQ:KTOS opened at $47.35 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 5.63 and a quick ratio of 5.08. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $53.57 and a 200-day moving average price of $74.74. Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. has a 1-year low of $45.58 and a 1-year high of $134.00. The firm has a market cap of $8.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 278.53 and a beta of 1.07.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Piper Sandler cut their target price on Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $99.00 to $75.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. BTIG Research reduced their target price on Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $115.00 to $100.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Clear Str raised Kratos Defense & Security Solutions to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and dropped their price target for the company from $99.00 to $82.00 in a research note on Friday, June 12th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Kratos Defense & Security Solutions has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $101.29.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider David M. Carter sold 4,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.45, for a total transaction of $201,800.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 66,238 shares in the company, valued at $3,341,707.10. This trade represents a 5.69% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Deanna H. Lund sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.85, for a total value of $264,250.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 285,405 shares in the company, valued at $15,083,654.25. This represents a 1.72% 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 three months, insiders sold 148,036 shares of company stock worth $8,455,857. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Kratos Defense & Security Solutions

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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