Stifel Nicolaus Initiates Coverage on Kratos Defense & Security Solutions (NASDAQ:KTOS)

Stock analysts at Stifel Nicolaus initiated coverage on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions (NASDAQ:KTOS - Get Free Report) in a note issued to investors on Tuesday,Briefing.com Automated Import reports. The firm set a "buy" rating and a $52.00 price target on the aerospace company's stock. Stifel Nicolaus' price objective would indicate a potential upside of 19.18% from the company's previous close.

A number of other research firms have also recently commented on KTOS. Noble Financial increased their target price on Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $38.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 17th. Benchmark raised their price objective on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $40.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their target price on Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $32.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Kratos Defense & Security Solutions has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $40.90.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions Stock Up 1.2%

NASDAQ:KTOS opened at $43.63 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 2.84 and a quick ratio of 2.26. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $36.68 and its 200-day moving average price is $32.10. The company has a market capitalization of $6.69 billion, a PE ratio of 335.64 and a beta of 0.99. Kratos Defense & Security Solutions has a 1-year low of $17.91 and a 1-year high of $46.52.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions (NASDAQ:KTOS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The aerospace company reported $0.12 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.09 by $0.03. Kratos Defense & Security Solutions had a net margin of 1.68% and a return on equity of 3.85%. The business had revenue of $302.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $292.25 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.11 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Kratos Defense & Security Solutions will post 0.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Kratos Defense & Security Solutions

In other Kratos Defense & Security Solutions news, CFO Deanna H. Lund sold 6,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.28, for a total transaction of $175,680.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 331,271 shares in the company, valued at $9,699,614.88. This trade represents a 1.78% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Steven S. Fendley sold 7,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.45, for a total value of $206,150.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 404,133 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,901,716.85. This represents a 1.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 151,572 shares of company stock worth $5,251,396. 2.37% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kratos Defense & Security Solutions

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in KTOS. Costello Asset Management INC purchased a new position in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in the first quarter worth about $29,000. Aspect Partners LLC lifted its stake in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 1,900.0% during the 1st quarter. Aspect Partners LLC now owns 1,000 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 950 shares during the period. Smallwood Wealth Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in the first quarter worth $30,000. Larson Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions during the first quarter worth $30,000. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its position in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 202.3% during the first quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,046 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 700 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.92% of the company's stock.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions Company Profile

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.