Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC Increases Stake in Leidos Holdings, Inc. $LDOS

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS - Free Report) by 46.0% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 49,812 shares of the aerospace company's stock after purchasing an additional 15,705 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC's holdings in Leidos were worth $8,197,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in LDOS. REAP Financial Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Leidos by 422.2% during the 4th quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 188 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 152 shares during the period. MCF Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Leidos during the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. Optimum Investment Advisors grew its holdings in shares of Leidos by 260.0% during the first quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors now owns 234 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares in the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT bought a new position in shares of Leidos in the first quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in Leidos in the first quarter worth $54,000. 76.12% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Leidos from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price target for the company from $185.00 to $205.00 in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Citigroup restated 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. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Leidos from $168.00 to $184.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $178.00 price target on Leidos and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Leidos from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $183.31.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Leidos news, Director Gary Stephen May sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 in the company, valued at approximately $1,804,892.85. This represents a 16.48% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Gregory R. Dahlberg sold 952 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $177.43, for a total value of $168,913.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 21,068 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,738,095.24. This represents a 4.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 22,975 shares of company stock valued at $4,078,740. Company insiders own 0.69% of the company's stock.

Leidos Trading Down 0.4%

NYSE:LDOS opened at $187.15 on Wednesday. Leidos Holdings, Inc. has a one year low of $123.62 and a one year high of $202.90. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $175.30 and a 200-day moving average price of $157.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.76 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 (NYSE:LDOS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The aerospace company reported $3.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.63 by $0.58. Leidos had a return on equity of 33.57% and a net margin of 8.22%.The business had revenue of $4.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.24 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $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. Sell-side analysts forecast that Leidos Holdings, Inc. will post 10.62 EPS 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 dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Leidos's payout ratio is 15.12%.

About Leidos

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.