Vident Advisory LLC Has $29.34 Million Stock Holdings in Leidos Holdings, Inc. $LDOS

Key Points

• Vident Advisory LLC has increased its stake in Leidos Holdings, Inc. by 138.2%, now owning 217,459 shares valued at approximately $29.34 million.
• Recent insider sales include Stephen Edward Hull selling 7,526 shares and Gary Stephen May selling 2,000 shares, indicating a decline in their ownership percentage.
• Leidos reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings with $3.21 EPS against an estimated $2.63, and established a quarterly dividend of $0.40, representing a 0.9% yield.

Vident Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS - Free Report) by 138.2% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 217,459 shares of the aerospace company's stock after purchasing an additional 126,180 shares during the period. Vident Advisory LLC owned approximately 0.17% of Leidos worth $29,344,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in shares of Leidos by 7.9% during the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 3,416,817 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $461,065,000 after acquiring an additional 251,245 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its position in shares of Leidos by 29.8% during the first quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,336,222 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $315,250,000 after purchasing an additional 536,452 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Leidos by 10.0% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,877,020 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $253,262,000 after purchasing an additional 170,263 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in shares of Leidos by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,208,015 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $174,027,000 after purchasing an additional 23,153 shares during the period. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Leidos by 130.3% in the 1st quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 711,437 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $96,001,000 after purchasing an additional 402,454 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.12% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on LDOS. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Leidos from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Leidos from $168.00 to $184.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Leidos from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their target price for the company from $185.00 to $205.00 in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Robert W. Baird downgraded Leidos from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $163.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, May 27th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on Leidos from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $179.46.

Leidos Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of LDOS traded down $0.48 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $180.88. 671,024 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 889,780. The company has a market cap of $23.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.10, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a quick ratio of 1.50, a current ratio of 1.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06. Leidos Holdings, Inc. has a 12-month low of $123.62 and a 12-month high of $202.90. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $168.22 and a 200-day simple moving average of $151.43.

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The aerospace company reported $3.21 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.63 by $0.58. The business 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 firm's quarterly revenue was up 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.63 EPS. Leidos has set its FY 2025 guidance at 11.150-11.450 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Leidos Holdings, Inc. will post 10.62 EPS for the current year.

Leidos Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Monday, September 15th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. Leidos's dividend payout ratio is currently 15.12%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

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.