Kratos Defense & Security Solutions (NASDAQ:KTOS) Hits New 12-Month High - Here's Why

Key Points

• Kratos Defense & Security Solutions shares reached a new 52-week high of $82.63, closing at $80.83 with a trading volume of 891,401 shares.
• Several analysts have upgraded Kratos' rating recently, with Royal Bank of Canada raising its target price from $50 to $65 and Goldman Sachs moving from "neutral" to "buy" with a $52 target price.
• The company's latest earnings report for Q2 showed earnings per share of $0.11, exceeding estimates, alongside a revenue increase of 17.1% year-over-year to $351.50 million.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:KTOS - Get Free Report) shares reached a new 52-week high on Monday . The stock traded as high as $82.63 and last traded at $80.83, with a volume of 891401 shares. The stock had previously closed at $80.77.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently commented on KTOS shares. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $50.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $52.00 target price for the company in a research note on Monday, June 30th. Citigroup reissued a "market outperform" rating on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Noble Financial reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a report on Monday, August 11th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group restated a "buy" rating and issued a $74.00 price objective on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a research note on Tuesday, September 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $57.64.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions Stock Down 0.1%

The company has a market cap of $13.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 799.33 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a current ratio of 4.43, a quick ratio of 3.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $64.09 and its 200-day moving average price is $45.82.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions (NASDAQ:KTOS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The aerospace company reported $0.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.09 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $351.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $305.67 million. Kratos Defense & Security Solutions had a net margin of 1.20% and a return on equity of 3.10%. The business's revenue was up 17.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.14 EPS. Kratos Defense & Security Solutions has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Q3 2025 guidance at EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. will post 0.31 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Kratos Defense & Security Solutions news, insider Steven S. Fendley sold 7,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.58, for a total transaction of $473,060.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 346,441 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $23,412,482.78. This trade represents a 1.98% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Deanna H. Lund sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.10, for a total transaction of $325,500.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 313,327 shares of the company's stock, valued at $20,397,587.70. The trade was a 1.57% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 77,430 shares of company stock valued at $4,745,162. Insiders own 2.37% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kratos Defense & Security Solutions

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Rovida Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $82,315,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 11.7% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 16,447,687 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $488,332,000 after purchasing an additional 1,728,179 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in the first quarter worth about $41,118,000. Voya Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 129.2% during the first quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 2,163,223 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $64,226,000 after purchasing an additional 1,219,585 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 29.6% during the 2nd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 5,086,494 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $236,268,000 after acquiring an additional 1,162,577 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.92% of the company's stock.

About Kratos Defense & Security Solutions

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc engages in the provision of mission critical products, services and solutions for United States national security priorities. It operates through the Kratos Government Solutions (KGS) and Unmanned Systems (US) segments. The KGS segment consists of an aggregation of KGS operating segments, including microwave electronic products, space, satellite and cyber, training solutions.

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