Appleton Partners Inc. MA Invests $12.51 Million in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. $KTOS

Appleton Partners Inc. MA acquired a new stake in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:KTOS) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 136,863 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,505,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of KTOS. Amalgamated Bank boosted its stake in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 57.7% during the third quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 73,673 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $6,732,000 after buying an additional 26,946 shares in the last quarter. Mission Wealth Management LP bought a new position in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions during the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,828,000. Baillie Gifford & Co. acquired a new position in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $19,048,000. ARK Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 22.2% in the 2nd quarter. ARK Investment Management LLC now owns 4,507,692 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $209,382,000 after purchasing an additional 818,104 shares in the last quarter. Finally, WCM Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $17,922,000. 75.92% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Kratos Defense & Security Solutions

In other news, insider David M. Carter sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.40, for a total transaction of $349,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 77,826 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,801,992.40. This represents a 4.89% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Marie Mendoza sold 1,676 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.18, for a total value of $201,421.68. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 63,393 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,618,570.74. This represents a 2.58% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 916,815 shares of company stock valued at $75,023,021 in the last three months. 2.37% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Noble Financial restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. KeyCorp boosted their target price on Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $90.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. BTIG Research increased their price target on Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $80.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating and set a $85.00 price objective on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a report on Thursday, November 6th. Finally, Truist Financial set a $135.00 price objective on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a research note on Friday, January 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $95.28.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions Trading Up 10.7%

NASDAQ:KTOS opened at $94.41 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $15.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 726.29 and a beta of 1.09. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $92.79 and its 200 day moving average price is $81.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 3.68 and a current ratio of 4.30. Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. has a 52 week low of $23.90 and a 52 week high of $134.00.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions (NASDAQ:KTOS) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The aerospace company reported $0.14 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.12 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $347.60 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $323.01 million. Kratos Defense & Security Solutions had a net margin of 1.56% and a return on equity of 3.14%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 26.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.11 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. will post 0.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Key Kratos Defense & Security Solutions News

Here are the key news stories impacting Kratos Defense & Security Solutions this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Taiwan partnership and drone production ramp — Kratos and Taiwan’s military successfully tested a jet-powered attack drone aimed at rapidly fielding low-cost, attritable aircraft, a material international contract/partnership that supports near-term production and revenue growth. Taiwan teams with US firm Kratos to build attack drones to counter China
• Positive Sentiment: Successful integrated Mighty Hornet IV test — Kratos and NCSIST validated the integrated Mighty Hornet IV system, reinforcing international demand for Kratos’ attritable and integrated drone/weapon solutions. This demonstrates exportable tech and program traction. Kratos, NCSIST Team Successfully Test Integrated Mighty Hornet IV System
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst/market coverage turning favorable — Coverage notes (Zacks, MarketBeat) highlight strong recent share gains, contract wins, hypersonics expansion and rising price targets from major brokers, which supports investor appetite and higher upside expectations. KTOS Stock Rises 17.7% in 3 Months
• Neutral Sentiment: Training and simulation wins noted — Coverage (Yahoo/Business Insider) flags Kratos’ training and simulation contracts as potential durable edges, but these are longer-duration revenue streams and less immediately accretive than production contracts. Do Kratos (KTOS) Training Wins Hint At A Durable Edge In Defense Simulation?
• Neutral Sentiment: Momentum / thematic coverage — MarketBeat and others include KTOS in lists of high-risk/high-reward defense stocks that outperformed in 2025; useful for sentiment but not a direct operational catalyst. Earnings scheduled late February remain the next major event. 3 High-Risk Stocks That Soared in 2025 But Can Still Fly Higher (KTOS)
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling — CFO Deanna Lund sold 5,000 shares (~$484k) and insider David M. Carter sold 4,000 shares (~$350k) in early Feb. Multiple insider sales can weigh on sentiment even as executives retain substantial positions. SEC filing for Carter’s sale: SEC filing: Carter sale SEC filing: Lund sale

About Kratos Defense & Security Solutions

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc (NASDAQ: KTOS) is a technology-driven company that specializes in national security and defense solutions for government and military customers. The firm’s core capabilities span unmanned systems, satellite communications, missile defense, cyber security, and directed-energy weapons. Through its integrated approach, Kratos delivers mission-critical products and services designed to enhance operational readiness and support force modernization initiatives.

In the unmanned systems arena, Kratos develops high-performance aerial platforms used as target drones, low-cost attritable aircraft and experimental stealth demonstrators.