Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. Has $5.74 Million Stock Holdings in Leidos Holdings, Inc. $LDOS

Key Points

• Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management boosted its Leidos stake by 548.1% in the fourth quarter, ending with 31,834 shares valued at about $5.74 million.
• Leidos reported better-than-expected quarterly results, posting EPS of $3.13 versus $2.88 expected and revenue of $4.40 billion versus $4.28 billion expected, while also reaffirming strong full-year guidance.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.43 per share, and analysts currently rate the stock a Moderate Buy with an average price target of $193.64, even as several firms trimmed targets.

Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS - Free Report) by 548.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 31,834 shares of the aerospace company's stock after buying an additional 26,922 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co.'s holdings in Leidos were worth $5,743,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Allianz Asset Management GmbH raised its holdings in Leidos by 20.1% during the third quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 339,972 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $64,241,000 after buying an additional 56,905 shares during the last quarter. LBP AM SA raised its holdings in Leidos by 43.8% during the third quarter. LBP AM SA now owns 63,211 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $11,944,000 after buying an additional 19,268 shares during the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp raised its holdings in Leidos by 2,924.4% during the fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 405,181 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $73,095,000 after buying an additional 391,784 shares during the last quarter. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP acquired a new position in Leidos during the third quarter worth $1,621,000. Finally, United Super Pty Ltd in its capacity as Trustee for the Construction & Building Unions Superannuation Fund raised its holdings in Leidos by 120.4% during the third quarter. United Super Pty Ltd in its capacity as Trustee for the Construction & Building Unions Superannuation Fund now owns 11,900 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $2,249,000 after buying an additional 6,500 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.12% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Leidos

In related news, Director Gary Stephen May sold 1,484 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.75, for a total transaction of $197,001.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 10,137 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,345,686.75. This trade represents a 12.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Elizabeth A. Porter sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.78, for a total transaction of $317,560.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 49,476 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,855,799.28. This trade represents a 3.89% 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. Company insiders own 0.77% of the company's stock.

Leidos Stock Performance

Shares of LDOS stock opened at $126.11 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $149.09 and a 200-day moving average of $173.34. The company has a market cap of $15.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.55, a P/E/G ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.40 and a quick ratio of 1.29. Leidos Holdings, Inc. has a one year low of $121.20 and a one year high of $205.77.

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The aerospace company reported $3.13 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.88 by $0.25. The company had revenue of $4.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.28 billion. Leidos had a net margin of 8.15% and a return on equity of 31.92%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.97 earnings per share. Leidos has set its FY 2026 guidance at 12.100-12.500 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Leidos Holdings, Inc. will post 12.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Leidos Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. Leidos's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 15.75%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have weighed in on LDOS shares. Bank of America lowered their price objective on shares of Leidos from $235.00 to $200.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on shares of Leidos from $220.00 to $195.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 20th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Leidos from $232.00 to $178.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Argus upgraded shares of Leidos to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on shares of Leidos in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $165.00 target price for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $193.64.

About Leidos

Leidos is an American technology and engineering company that provides services and solutions to government and commercial customers, with a strong focus on national security, defense, intelligence, and civil government markets. The company delivers systems integration, engineering, cybersecurity, software development, data analytics, cloud migration and managed IT services, as well as mission support for complex programs. Leidos' work spans areas such as C4ISR (command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance), secure communications, sensors and systems engineering, and health IT solutions for public-sector healthcare programs.

Leidos traces its corporate roots to Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC) and emerged as an independent, publicly traded company following a corporate separation in 2013.

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