Pzena Investment Management LLC Buys 12,599 Shares of Leidos Holdings, Inc. $LDOS

Key Points

• Pzena Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Leidos Holdings, Inc. by 5.4%, purchasing an additional 12,599 shares, bringing their total ownership to approximately 244,302 shares valued at $38.54 million.
• Insider sales occurred recently, with Director Gary Stephen May selling 2,000 shares for $356,100, representing a 16.48% decrease in his ownership, and Director Gregory R. Dahlberg selling 952 shares for $168,913.
• Leidos reported earnings of $3.21 per share for the most recent quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations, and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.40 per share, yielding 0.9% annually.

Pzena Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS - Free Report) by 5.4% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 244,302 shares of the aerospace company's stock after purchasing an additional 12,599 shares during the period. Pzena Investment Management LLC owned about 0.19% of Leidos worth $38,541,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LDOS. MCF Advisors LLC bought a new position in Leidos during the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. First Pacific Financial purchased a new stake in Leidos during the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Leidos during the second quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Optimum Investment Advisors increased its holdings in Leidos by 260.0% during the first quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors now owns 234 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 169 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Zions Bancorporation National Association UT purchased a new stake in Leidos during the first quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Institutional investors own 76.12% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Gary Stephen May sold 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $178.05, for a total transaction of $356,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 10,137 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,804,892.85. This represents a 16.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Gregory R. Dahlberg sold 952 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $177.43, for a total transaction of $168,913.36. Following the transaction, the director owned 21,068 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,738,095.24. This represents a 4.32% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 22,975 shares of company stock worth $4,078,740. 0.69% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Leidos Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:LDOS opened at $187.89 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 1.50 and a current ratio of 1.62. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $182.98 and a 200 day moving average price of $162.18. Leidos Holdings, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $123.62 and a fifty-two week high of $202.90. The firm has a market cap of $24.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.76, a P/E/G ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 0.71.

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The aerospace company reported $3.21 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.63 by $0.58. Leidos had a net margin of 8.22% and a return on equity of 33.57%. The firm had revenue of $4.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.24 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.63 earnings per share. Leidos's revenue for the quarter 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, sell-side analysts expect that Leidos Holdings, Inc. will post 10.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Leidos Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Monday, September 15th were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 15th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Leidos's dividend payout ratio is currently 15.12%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Leidos from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised shares of Leidos from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a report on Thursday, September 4th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Leidos from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their target price for the company from $185.00 to $205.00 in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Leidos in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Argus increased their price objective on shares of Leidos from $185.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $188.31.

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.

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