Stephens Investment Management Group LLC Has $89.52 Million Holdings in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. $KTOS

Key Points

• Stephens Investment Management Group trimmed its Kratos Defense & Security Solutions stake by 12.1% in the fourth quarter, but still held 1.18 million shares worth about $89.5 million. Kratos remained its 22nd-largest position.
• Wall Street sentiment is still broadly positive: analysts rate KTOS a Moderate Buy with a $96.28 consensus price target, even as some firms lowered targets recently. Ratings included several buys and strong buys, alongside a few holds.
• Kratos posted better-than-expected first-quarter results, reporting EPS of $0.16 versus the $0.13 estimate and revenue of $371 million, up 22.6% year over year. Despite the earnings beat, the stock was down about 5% and insider selling continued during the quarter.

Stephens Investment Management Group LLC reduced its stake in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:KTOS - Free Report) by 12.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,179,288 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 161,776 shares during the quarter. Kratos Defense & Security Solutions accounts for approximately 1.2% of Stephens Investment Management Group LLC's holdings, making the stock its 22nd biggest position. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC owned 0.70% of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions worth $89,520,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp raised its stake in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 7,600.0% during the 4th quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp now owns 385 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 380 shares during the last quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in the 2nd quarter valued at $31,000. Caitlin John LLC acquired a new position in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in the 3rd quarter valued at $32,000. Accredited Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 193.5% in the 3rd quarter. Accredited Wealth Management LLC now owns 408 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 269 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. acquired a new position in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in the 3rd quarter valued at $38,000. 75.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on KTOS. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $100.00 to $80.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $93.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Citizens Jmp dropped their price objective on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $125.00 to $105.00 and set a "market outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Finally, UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $82.00 price objective on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $96.28.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions Stock Down 5.0%

Shares of NASDAQ:KTOS opened at $52.09 on Friday. Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. has a 12 month low of $34.02 and a 12 month high of $134.00. The company's 50-day moving average price is $72.39 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $83.05. The company has a quick ratio of 5.08, a current ratio of 5.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The firm has a market cap of $9.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 306.41 and a beta of 1.06.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions (NASDAQ:KTOS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The aerospace company reported $0.16 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.13 by $0.03. Kratos Defense & Security Solutions had a net margin of 2.08% and a return on equity of 2.82%. The firm had revenue of $371.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $345.00 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.12 EPS. The company's revenue was up 22.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. will post 0.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Kratos Defense & Security Solutions news, insider Steven S. Fendley sold 7,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.64, for a total transaction of $431,480.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 351,039 shares of the company's stock, valued at $21,638,043.96. This represents a 1.96% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider David M. Carter sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.00, for a total transaction of $232,000.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 74,071 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,296,118. This represents a 5.12% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 168,027 shares of company stock worth $13,312,040. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions Company Profile

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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