Kratos Defense & Security Solutions (NASDAQ:KTOS) CFO Sells $280,000.00 in Stock

Key Points

• Kratos CFO Deanna Lund sold 7,000 shares for $280,000 at an average price of $40 under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan, reducing her direct holdings by 2.56% to 266,740 shares.
• KTOS recently traded near $41, well below its 52-week high of $134. The company’s latest quarter exceeded expectations, with EPS of $0.21 versus $0.14 expected and revenue up 30.5% year over year to $458.8 million.
• Investor sentiment is mixed: Kratos received a $33.6 million NASA contract and maintains a “Moderate Buy” consensus, but several analysts have cut price targets and broader defense-sector weakness continues to pressure the stock.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:KTOS - Get Free Report) CFO Deanna Lund sold 7,000 shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.00, for a total value of $280,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 266,740 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,669,600. The trade was a 2.56% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions Price Performance

KTOS stock traded down $0.14 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $41.17. 2,804,743 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,350,244. Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. has a 52 week low of $36.37 and a 52 week high of $134.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 242.18 and a beta of 1.11. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $46.22 and a 200 day simple moving average of $65.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 4.99 and a current ratio of 5.54.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions (NASDAQ:KTOS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The aerospace company reported $0.21 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.07. Kratos Defense & Security Solutions had a return on equity of 3.07% and a net margin of 2.03%. The firm had revenue of $458.80 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $410.36 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.11 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 30.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. will post 0.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Kratos Defense & Security Solutions this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Kratos received a $33.6 million NASA contract to design, build and deliver the power conversion system for Space Reactor-1 Freedom, a nuclear-powered interplanetary spacecraft targeted for launch in 2028. The work will be performed as a subcontractor to Sierra Lobo under NASA’s SpaceDOC III program, adding to Kratos’ space and national-security backlog. Kratos NASA contract announcement
• Positive Sentiment: Macquarie initiated coverage of KTOS with an “outperform” rating, adding another bullish analyst view amid investor interest in defense technology, drones and space systems. Macquarie initiates coverage
• Positive Sentiment: Kratos was included among drone-technology stocks viewed as potential beneficiaries of rising adoption, reinforcing the long-term investment case tied to unmanned systems and advanced defense technologies. Drone technology stocks article
• Neutral Sentiment: RBC maintained its “outperform” rating but lowered its price target from $80 to $55. The downgrade reflects reduced near-term valuation expectations, although the new target still implies meaningful upside from the reported trading level. RBC price target update
• Negative Sentiment: Defense stocks have experienced an unusually prolonged sector sell-off, with the aerospace and defense ETF XAR surrendering its 2026 gain. That broader risk-off environment can pressure KTOS even after positive contract news, particularly ahead of quarterly earnings. Defense stocks to watch

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on KTOS. Weiss Ratings lowered Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from a "hold (c)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $88.00 to $77.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 12th. Rothschild & Co Redburn assumed coverage on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a research note on Tuesday, October 6th. They set a "buy" rating and a $70.00 target price for the company. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price target on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $80.00 to $55.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Citizens Jmp cut their price target on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $105.00 to $70.00 and set a "market outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 19th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have assigned a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $88.25.

Institutional Trading of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vision Retirement LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 288.2% in the first quarter. Vision Retirement LLC now owns 427 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 317 shares during the period. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC bought a new position in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in the second quarter worth approximately $25,000. IMG Wealth Management Inc. increased its holdings in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 427.0% during the 1st quarter. IMG Wealth Management Inc. now owns 527 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 427 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its holdings in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 333.3% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 650 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the period. Finally, Compass Financial Management LLC bought a new stake in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions during the 2nd quarter valued at $34,000. Institutional investors own 75.92% of the company's stock.

About Kratos Defense & Security Solutions

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc is a technology and defense contractor that develops systems and products for national security applications. The company supports the U.S. Department of Defense, intelligence agencies, national security-related organizations and selected commercial customers, with an emphasis on affordable, rapidly deployable technologies.

Its offerings include unmanned aerial and target systems, hypersonic and high-speed systems, rocket and propulsion technologies, satellite communications equipment, microwave electronics, radar and missile-defense systems, electronic warfare solutions, command-and-control systems, and virtual and live training products.

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