Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS) Short Interest Update

Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,910,000 shares, an increase of 28.2% from the October 31st total of 1,490,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,080,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.8 days. Approximately 1.5% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LDOS has been the subject of several recent research reports. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Leidos from $180.00 to $218.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on Leidos from $205.00 to $228.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Leidos from $194.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Leidos from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Leidos from $230.00 to $205.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $187.36.

Leidos Trading Up 0.1 %

LDOS stock traded up $0.14 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $165.54. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 717,069 shares, compared to its average volume of 933,696. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.84, a PEG ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 0.68. Leidos has a 1 year low of $105.52 and a 1 year high of $202.90. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $171.29 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $156.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.23.

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The aerospace company reported $2.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.96 by $0.97. The firm had revenue of $4.19 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.06 billion. Leidos had a return on equity of 30.31% and a net margin of 7.37%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.03 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Leidos will post 10.04 EPS for the current year.

Leidos Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This is a boost from Leidos’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 16th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.97%. Leidos’s payout ratio is presently 17.31%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Surya N. Mohapatra sold 2,748 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.97, for a total transaction of $535,777.56. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 20,001 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,899,594.97. This represents a 12.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Noel B. Geer bought 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $161.13 per share, for a total transaction of $322,260.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 2,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $322,260. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.96% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Leidos

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp raised its stake in Leidos by 1.0% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,800,357 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $945,458,000 after buying an additional 56,066 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Leidos by 1.3% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,365,903 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $546,912,000 after purchasing an additional 42,358 shares during the period. FMR LLC raised its holdings in Leidos by 27.8% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,405,726 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $392,133,000 after purchasing an additional 522,764 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its holdings in Leidos by 2.5% during the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,153,420 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $351,007,000 after acquiring an additional 53,307 shares during the period. Finally, Millennium Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Leidos by 156.5% during the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,133,508 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $165,356,000 after purchasing an additional 691,575 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.12% of the company’s stock.

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.