Kratos Defense & Security Solutions (NASDAQ:KTOS) Director Sells $635,000.00 in Stock

Key Points

• Director Scot Jarvis sold 10,000 KTOS shares at an average price of $63.50, generating $635,000 and reducing his direct stake by 13.31% to 65,123 shares.
• Kratos reported strong quarterly results, with revenue rising 30.5% year over year to $458.8 million and EPS of $0.21 versus the $0.14 consensus estimate. The company also received multi-million-dollar orders for GAIA 100 satellite ground-station systems.
• KTOS shares fell 7.2% to $56.18, while analysts maintained a broadly positive outlook with a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $99.47; however, elevated valuation and continued insider selling remain risks.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:KTOS - Get Free Report) Director Scot Jarvis sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.50, for a total transaction of $635,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 65,123 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,135,310.50. The trade was a 13.31% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions Stock Down 7.2%

KTOS stock traded down $4.38 during trading on Thursday, hitting $56.18. 4,552,794 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,976,278. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 330.47 and a beta of 1.08. Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. has a 1 year low of $43.09 and a 1 year high of $134.00. The company has a quick ratio of 4.99, a current ratio of 5.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $52.77 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $66.85.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions (NASDAQ:KTOS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The aerospace company reported $0.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $458.80 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $410.36 million. Kratos Defense & Security Solutions had a return on equity of 3.07% and a net margin of 2.03%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up 30.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.11 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. will post 0.57 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on KTOS shares. Jefferies Financial Group set a $105.00 price target on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from a "hold (c)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Citigroup restated a "market outperform" rating on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $100.00 to $89.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Finally, Citizens Jmp decreased their price objective on Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $125.00 to $105.00 and set a "market outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have given a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Kratos Defense & Security Solutions has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $99.47.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Kratos received multi-million-dollar orders through its Orbit subsidiary for GAIA 100 tri-band satellite ground-station systems. The orders support demand for the company’s space communications and tracking technologies. Kratos Receives Multi-Million-Dollar Orders for GAIA 100 Tri-Band Ground Station Systems
• Positive Sentiment: Recent second-quarter results remained strong, with revenue up 30.5% year over year to $458.8 million and EPS of $0.21, above the $0.14 consensus estimate. Growth was broad-based across government solutions, defense rocket support, turbine technology and microwave products. Kratos: A Production Powerhouse That No Longer Feels Speculative
• Neutral Sentiment: Kratos’ backlog, capacity expansion and exposure to unmanned systems, hypersonics and satellite communications support its long-term growth outlook. However, investors are demanding continued execution and margin improvement, while the stock’s elevated earnings multiple leaves limited room for disappointment.
• Neutral Sentiment: China reportedly asked the United States to remove new tariffs on drones and related components. The development highlights ongoing trade-policy uncertainty for defense and drone companies, although its direct effect on Kratos is unclear. China Reportedly Presses U.S. to Scrap Drone Tariffs
• Negative Sentiment: Insiders have reported numerous sales and no open-market purchases over the past six months. Recent transactions included Phillip Carrai’s sale of 26,500 shares and SVP Marie Mendoza’s sale of 1,513 shares. Both were made under pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plans, reducing their value as discretionary bearish signals, but the selling can still weigh on sentiment. Kratos Insider Selling
• Negative Sentiment: Institutional positioning was mixed in the latest quarter, with more funds reducing positions than adding shares. Large reductions by BlackRock, Franklin Resources and other managers may reinforce short-term selling pressure.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kratos Defense & Security Solutions

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,446,230 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $337,565,000 after purchasing an additional 148,622 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley raised its holdings in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 3,311,095 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $251,345,000 after buying an additional 124,607 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of 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 during the period. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 13.6% during the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 2,072,700 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $189,383,000 after buying an additional 247,652 shares during the period. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LLC grew its holdings in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 7,701.6% during the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 1,593,549 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $120,966,000 after buying an additional 1,573,123 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.92% of the company's stock.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions Company Profile

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

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