Norges Bank Acquires Shares of 1,099,462 Leonardo DRS, Inc. $DRS

Key Points

• Norges Bank initiated a new position in Leonardo DRS, buying 1,099,462 shares valued at about $37.5 million and giving it roughly 0.41% ownership of the company.
• Leonardo DRS has seen positive analyst sentiment, with multiple firms raising ratings and Bank of America lifting its price target to $55; the stock’s consensus rating is now Moderate Buy.
• The company reported better-than-expected Q1 results, with EPS of $0.26 and revenue of $846 million, while also continuing to return cash to shareholders via a quarterly dividend of $0.09 per share.

Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Leonardo DRS, Inc. (NASDAQ:DRS - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund acquired 1,099,462 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $37,481,000. Norges Bank owned approximately 0.41% of Leonardo DRS at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC raised its position 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 buying an additional 202,758 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB raised its position 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 buying an additional 87,661 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP raised its position 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 buying an additional 1,972,596 shares in the last quarter. PFG Advisors acquired a new position in shares of Leonardo DRS in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,484,000. Finally, Magnetar Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Leonardo DRS in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,362,000. 18.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on DRS. Truist Financial raised Leonardo DRS to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen raised Leonardo DRS from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Sunday, May 10th. Morgan Stanley set a $47.00 price target on Leonardo DRS in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Weiss Ratings raised Leonardo DRS from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price target on Leonardo DRS from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $52.00.

Leonardo DRS Price Performance

Shares of DRS opened at $46.55 on Tuesday. Leonardo DRS, Inc. has a 12-month low of $32.43 and a 12-month high of $49.31. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $44.33 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $40.97. The company has a quick ratio of 1.52, a current ratio of 1.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The stock has a market cap of $12.42 billion, a PE ratio of 43.50, a PEG ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 0.34.

Leonardo DRS (NASDAQ:DRS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The company reported $0.26 earnings per share (EPS) 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 business had revenue of $846.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $825.05 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.20 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Leonardo DRS has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.260-1.300 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Leonardo DRS, Inc. will post 1.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Leonardo DRS Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Transactions at Leonardo DRS

In other Leonardo DRS news, Director Reuben Jeffery III purchased 25,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 19th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $42.77 per share, for a total transaction of $1,069,250.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 25,000 shares in the company, valued at $1,069,250. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Sally Wallace sold 28,960 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.35, for a total transaction of $1,342,296.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 58,353 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,704,661.55. This trade represents a 33.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 67,771 shares of company stock worth $3,104,615. 0.25% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Leonardo DRS

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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