Insider Selling: Kratos Defense & Security Solutions (NASDAQ:KTOS) Director Sells 3,000 Shares of Stock

Key Points

• Director Bradley Boyd sold 3,000 shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions at an average price of $52.08, totaling $156,240. After the transaction, he still owned 16,480 shares, a 15.4% reduction in his stake.
• KTOS shares were under pressure, trading at $53.47 and well below both its 50-day and 200-day moving averages. The stock has ranged from a 52-week low of $34.06 to a high of $134.00.
• The company posted strong quarterly results, with EPS of $0.16 beating estimates and revenue of $371 million, up 22.6% year over year. Analysts currently rate the stock a “Moderate Buy” with a consensus target price of $96.28.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:KTOS - Get Free Report) Director Bradley Boyd sold 3,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.08, for a total value of $156,240.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 16,480 shares in the company, valued at $858,278.40. This trade represents a 15.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions Price Performance

Shares of KTOS traded down $0.75 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $53.47. 2,747,650 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,297,410. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $71.76 and a two-hundred day moving average of $82.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 5.08 and a current ratio of 5.63. Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. has a 52-week low of $34.06 and a 52-week high of $134.00. The company has a market cap of $10.03 billion, a PE ratio of 314.53 and a beta of 1.06.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

KTOS has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group set a $80.00 target price on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a research note on Sunday, May 10th. Truist Financial upgraded shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. BNP Paribas Exane increased their price objective on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Noble Financial restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, Citizens Jmp cut their target price on 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. 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. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $96.28.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Kratos continues to benefit from rising defense spending and demand for unmanned systems, with recent results showing 22.6% revenue growth and a record backlog.
• Neutral Sentiment: A market article singled out KTOS as a long-term growth name after its pullback, arguing the recent weakness may have improved the entry point versus earlier highs. 3 Undervalued Stocks to Buy Before the Market's Next Big Move
• Negative Sentiment: Director and executive insider sales, including a 3,000-share sale by Bradley L. Boyd and additional sales by Phillip D. Carrai and Marie Mendoza, may be adding pressure to the stock. SEC filing

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kratos Defense & Security Solutions

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of KTOS. Alliancebernstein L.P. grew its position in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 1,389.0% in the 3rd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 2,707,776 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $247,409,000 after acquiring an additional 2,525,921 shares during the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC grew its position in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 7,701.6% in the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 1,593,549 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $120,966,000 after acquiring an additional 1,573,123 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in the 4th quarter valued at $104,807,000. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP bought a new position in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in the 3rd quarter valued at $91,901,000. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP grew its position in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 29.5% in the 3rd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 3,068,863 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $280,402,000 after acquiring an additional 698,778 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.92% of the company's stock.

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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