Gary Stephen May Sells 1,000 Shares of Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) Stock

Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS) Director Gary May sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.85, for a total transaction of $140,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 10,204 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,437,233.40. This trade represents a 8.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link.

Leidos Stock Performance

LDOS opened at $132.12 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $16.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.32, a P/E/G ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.63 and a quick ratio of 1.60. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $122.51 and its 200 day simple moving average is $137.83. Leidos Holdings, Inc. has a 1-year low of $98.86 and a 1-year high of $205.77.

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The aerospace company reported $3.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.91 by $0.35. The firm had revenue of $4.56 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.44 billion. Leidos had a return on equity of 30.81% and a net margin of 7.80%.Leidos’s revenue was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.21 earnings per share. Leidos has set its FY 2026 guidance at 12.200-12.500 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Leidos Holdings, Inc. will post 12.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Leidos declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Friday, July 31st that permits the company to buyback 20,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization permits the aerospace company to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Leidos Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 15th. Leidos’s payout ratio is 16.04%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Leidos from $115.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, August 7th. Bank of America reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $125.00 price target (down from $200.00) on shares of Leidos in a report on Wednesday, June 17th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating and set a $145.00 price objective on shares of Leidos in a research note on Sunday, August 9th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Leidos from $138.00 to $161.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, Truist Financial reduced their target price on Leidos from $195.00 to $160.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Leidos has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $162.93.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Leidos

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of LDOS. Allianz Asset Management GmbH grew its holdings in shares of Leidos by 12.2% during the second quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 306,889 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $31,600,000 after buying an additional 33,385 shares in the last quarter. Amundi lifted its stake in shares of Leidos by 9.3% during the second quarter. Amundi now owns 165,512 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $17,043,000 after buying an additional 14,049 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC boosted its position in Leidos by 11.6% during the second quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 136,582 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $14,064,000 after acquiring an additional 14,165 shares during the last quarter. Groupe la Francaise boosted its position in Leidos by 10.2% during the second quarter. Groupe la Francaise now owns 1,509 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $155,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. Finally, VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al purchased a new stake in Leidos in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $11,188,000. 76.12% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.