Rafferty Asset Management LLC Sells 2,664 Shares of Leidos Holdings, Inc. $LDOS

Key Points

• Rafferty Asset Management LLC has cut its position in Leidos Holdings, Inc. by 21.4%, owning 9,796 shares valued at approximately $1.32 million after selling 2,664 shares in the 1st quarter.
• Meanwhile, several other institutional investors significantly increased their stakes, with Pacer Advisors boosting theirs by 3,450% during the same period.
• Leidos recently reported an EPS of $3.21 for the latest quarter, exceeding analyst expectations, and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.40 per share.

Rafferty Asset Management LLC lowered its stake in Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS - Free Report) by 21.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 9,796 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 2,664 shares during the period. Rafferty Asset Management LLC's holdings in Leidos were worth $1,322,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Sowell Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Leidos in the first quarter valued at approximately $267,000. MidWestOne Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in Leidos by 47.8% during the 4th quarter. MidWestOne Financial Group Inc. now owns 19,841 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $2,858,000 after acquiring an additional 6,418 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its holdings in Leidos by 263.7% during the 1st quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 13,706 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $1,849,000 after acquiring an additional 9,938 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its holdings in Leidos by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 437,535 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $63,026,000 after acquiring an additional 4,903 shares during the period. Finally, Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Leidos by 2,940.8% during the 1st quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 2,159 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $291,000 after acquiring an additional 2,088 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.12% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have commented on LDOS shares. Robert W. Baird lowered shares of Leidos from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $163.00 target price for the company. in a report on Tuesday, May 27th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Leidos from $168.00 to $184.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $190.00 target price (up previously from $186.00) on shares of Leidos in a report on Monday, July 14th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Leidos from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $185.00 to $205.00 in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Leidos from $173.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $179.46.

Leidos Stock Down 1.9%

LDOS stock traded down $3.45 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $177.44. 613,668 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 824,593. The firm's 50-day moving average is $169.26 and its 200-day moving average is $151.81. The company has a market cap of $22.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.77, a PEG ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.62 and a quick ratio of 1.50. Leidos Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $123.62 and a 12 month high of $202.90.

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, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.63 by $0.58. The firm had revenue of $4.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.24 billion. Leidos had a return on equity of 33.57% and a net margin of 8.22%.The company's revenue was up 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.63 EPS. Leidos has set its FY 2025 guidance at 11.150-11.450 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Leidos Holdings, Inc. will post 10.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Leidos Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Monday, September 15th will be paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. Leidos's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 15.12%.

Insider Activity at Leidos

In other Leidos news, Director Gary Stephen May sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $178.05, for a total value of $356,100.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 10,137 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,804,892.85. This represents a 16.48% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Stephen Edward Hull sold 7,526 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $176.39, for a total transaction of $1,327,511.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 26,481 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,670,983.59. This represents a 22.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 10,478 shares of company stock worth $1,852,525. Insiders own 0.69% of the company's stock.

Leidos Company 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.