Kratos Defense & Security Solutions (NASDAQ:KTOS) Shares Down 2.1% After Analyst Downgrade

Key Points

• Kratos shares fell 2.1% after KeyCorp cut its price target from $130 to $75, though it maintained an overweight rating. The stock traded near $40.23, while the broader analyst consensus remained “Moderate Buy” with an average target of $83.65.
• Analyst opinions are mixed, with recent ratings ranging from strong buy to sell. Insider selling totaled 377,013 shares worth approximately $23.6 million over the past three months, while insiders own 1.5% of the company.
• Kratos reported strong quarterly results, including $0.21 EPS versus the $0.14 estimate and $458.8 million in revenue, up 30.5% year over year. Institutional investors own approximately 75.92% of the company’s stock.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:KTOS - Get Free Report)'s share price was down 2.1% during trading on Monday after KeyCorp lowered their price target on the stock from $130.00 to $75.00. KeyCorp currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Kratos Defense & Security Solutions traded as low as $39.68 and last traded at $40.23. Approximately 3,379,911 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 22% from the average session volume of 4,350,273 shares. The stock had previously closed at $41.09.

Other research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Weiss Ratings downgraded Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from a "hold (c)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, October 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from a "buy" rating to a "negative" rating in a report on Monday, October 19th. Guggenheim assumed coverage on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a report on Monday, September 14th. They set a "buy" rating and a $74.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Barclays began coverage on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a research report on Friday, October 9th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $90.00 price target for the company. 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 company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $83.65.

Insider Transactions at Kratos Defense & Security Solutions

In other news, SVP Marie Mendoza sold 1,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.50, for a total transaction of $48,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 61,200 shares in the company, valued at $2,968,200. This trade represents a 1.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Deanna H. 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 transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 266,740 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,669,600. This represents a 2.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders have sold 377,013 shares of company stock worth $23,564,182. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 12.2% during the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,515,997 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $106,893,000 after buying an additional 164,607 shares during the last quarter. B&D White Capital Company LLC boosted its position in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 21,357.3% during the third quarter. B&D White Capital Company LLC now owns 1,823,870 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $77,861,000 after acquiring an additional 1,815,370 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 48.0% during the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,056,872 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $74,520,000 after acquiring an additional 342,789 shares during the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. boosted its position in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 16.7% during the third quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 1,664,120 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $71,041,000 after acquiring an additional 238,611 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bamco Inc. NY acquired a new stake in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions during the 2nd quarter worth about $53,746,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.92% of the company's stock.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions Stock Performance

The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $45.16 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $64.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 4.99 and a current ratio of 5.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 236.65 and a beta of 1.18.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions (NASDAQ:KTOS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The aerospace company reported $0.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 company had revenue of $458.80 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $410.36 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.11 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 30.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. will post 0.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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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