Rafferty Asset Management LLC Buys 1,164 Shares of Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS)

Rafferty Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS) by 10.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,460 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,164 shares during the quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Leidos were worth $1,795,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC boosted its position in Leidos by 4.8% during the fourth quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,680 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $242,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Leidos by 20.4% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 454 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $65,000 after buying an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its holdings in shares of Leidos by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 2,738 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $394,000 after buying an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Leidos by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 5,197 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $749,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Interchange Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Leidos by 6.7% during the fourth quarter. Interchange Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,690 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $244,000 after buying an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.12% of the company’s stock.

Leidos Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE LDOS opened at $160.27 on Wednesday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $143.29 and a 200 day simple moving average of $148.31. The company has a current ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.35, a PEG ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.65. Leidos Holdings, Inc. has a one year low of $123.62 and a one year high of $202.90.

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The aerospace company reported $2.97 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.47 by $0.50. Leidos had a return on equity of 30.93% and a net margin of 7.53%. The business had revenue of $4.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.11 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.29 earnings per share. Leidos’s revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Leidos Holdings, Inc. will post 10.62 EPS for the current year.

Leidos Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.00%. Leidos’s dividend payout ratio is currently 16.10%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Leidos news, Director Gregory R. Dahlberg sold 1,250 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.55, for a total transaction of $193,187.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 20,195 shares in the company, valued at $3,121,137.25. This represents a 5.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.96% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LDOS has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. UBS Group upped their price target on Leidos from $149.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Leidos from $173.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded Leidos to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Leidos from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, Truist Financial cut their price target on Leidos from $165.00 to $155.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 14th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $180.69.

Leidos Company Profile

Leidos Holdings, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides services and solutions in the defense, intelligence, civil, and health markets in the United States and internationally. The company operates through Defense Solutions, Civil, and Health segments. The Defense Solutions segment offers national security solutions and systems for air, land, sea, space, and cyberspace for the U.S.