Westfield Capital Management Co. LP Has $94.55 Million Position in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. $KTOS

Key Points

• Westfield Capital Management increased its stake in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 23.8% in the fourth quarter, ending with 1,245,587 shares valued at about $94.6 million.
• Several other institutions also raised their positions, and hedge funds/institutional investors now own 75.92% of Kratos shares, underscoring strong Wall Street interest in the defense company.
• Kratos reported better-than-expected quarterly results with EPS of $0.16 versus $0.13 expected and revenue of $371 million, while analysts currently rate the stock a Moderate Buy with an average price target of $96.28.

Westfield Capital Management Co. LP boosted its holdings in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:KTOS - Free Report) by 23.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,245,587 shares of the aerospace company's stock after buying an additional 239,771 shares during the period. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP owned about 0.74% of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions worth $94,553,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,446,230 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $337,565,000 after buying an additional 148,622 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its stake in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 29.5% during the third quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 3,068,863 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $280,402,000 after buying an additional 698,778 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 7.4% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,046,194 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $278,331,000 after buying an additional 209,189 shares in the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its stake in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 1,389.0% during the third quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 2,707,776 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $247,409,000 after buying an additional 2,525,921 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 13.6% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 2,072,700 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $189,383,000 after purchasing an additional 247,652 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.92% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

KTOS has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Citizens Jmp reduced their target price on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $125.00 to $105.00 and set a "market outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 8th. BNP Paribas Exane boosted their target price on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $99.00 to $75.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Clear Str upgraded shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Kratos Defense & Security Solutions presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $96.28.

Insider Activity

In other Kratos Defense & Security Solutions news, CFO Deanna H. Lund sold 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.74, for a total transaction of $318,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 290,161 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $18,494,862.14. The trade was a 1.69% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Bobbi Doorenbos sold 2,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.29, for a total value of $143,225.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 12,500 shares of the company's stock, valued at $716,125. This represents a 16.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders sold 183,564 shares of company stock worth $12,745,304. Corporate insiders own 1.50% of the company's stock.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions Stock Up 8.5%

Shares of NASDAQ KTOS opened at $63.40 on Friday. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $64.11 and its 200 day simple moving average is $80.72. The company has a market cap of $11.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 372.94 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a quick ratio of 5.08, a current ratio of 5.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. has a 12-month low of $37.90 and a 12-month high of $134.00.

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

About Kratos Defense & Security Solutions

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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