Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) Hits New 12-Month Low - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Leidos stock hit a new 52-week low on Tuesday, falling to as low as $125.34 before last trading near $127.51, well below its previous close of $130.11.
• The company’s latest earnings were better than expected, with Q1 EPS of $3.13 versus $2.88 expected and revenue of $4.40 billion topping estimates, while management guided FY 2026 EPS to 12.1–12.5.
• Despite the weak share price, analysts still see upside overall: Leidos has a Moderate Buy consensus rating and an average price target of $193.64, though some recent firms have cut targets or downgraded the stock.

Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS - Get Free Report)'s stock price reached a new 52-week low during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $125.34 and last traded at $127.5090, with a volume of 1854744 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $130.11.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LDOS has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Leidos from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on Leidos in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $165.00 price target on the stock. Bank of America dropped their price target on Leidos from $235.00 to $200.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. UBS Group set a $204.00 price objective on Leidos in a research note on Thursday, January 15th. Finally, Argus upgraded Leidos to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Leidos currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $193.64.

Leidos Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.40 and a quick ratio of 1.29. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.56. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $158.39 and a 200 day moving average of $177.31.

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The aerospace company reported $3.13 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.88 by $0.25. Leidos had a net margin of 8.15% and a return on equity of 31.92%. The company had revenue of $4.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.28 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.97 EPS. Leidos's revenue was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. Leidos has set its FY 2026 guidance at 12.100-12.500 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Leidos Holdings, Inc. will post 12.25 EPS for the current year.

Leidos Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be paid a $0.43 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.3%. Leidos's dividend payout ratio is 15.75%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Elizabeth A. Porter sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.78, for a total transaction of $317,560.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 49,476 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,855,799.28. This trade represents a 3.89% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Gary Stephen May sold 1,484 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.75, for a total value of $197,001.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 10,137 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,345,686.75. This represents a 12.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.77% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Leidos

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Focus Partners Wealth lifted its position in shares of Leidos by 46.5% in the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 3,073 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $415,000 after purchasing an additional 976 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP increased its stake in Leidos by 86.3% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 14,250 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $2,248,000 after buying an additional 6,600 shares during the last quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Leidos by 2.7% in the 2nd quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC now owns 3,399 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $536,000 after buying an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC lifted its position in Leidos by 20.2% during the 2nd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 41,405 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $6,532,000 after buying an additional 6,962 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Natixis boosted its stake in shares of Leidos by 222.3% during the 2nd quarter. Natixis now owns 8,155 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $1,287,000 after buying an additional 5,625 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.12% of the company's stock.

About Leidos

Leidos is an American technology and engineering company that provides services and solutions to government and commercial customers, with a strong focus on national security, defense, intelligence, and civil government markets. The company delivers systems integration, engineering, cybersecurity, software development, data analytics, cloud migration and managed IT services, as well as mission support for complex programs. Leidos' work spans areas such as C4ISR (command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance), secure communications, sensors and systems engineering, and health IT solutions for public-sector healthcare programs.

Leidos traces its corporate roots to Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC) and emerged as an independent, publicly traded company following a corporate separation in 2013.

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