Private Client Services LLC Purchases Shares of 2,615 Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS)

Private Client Services LLC bought a new stake in Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 2,615 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $377,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Savant Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of Leidos by 55.7% in the 2nd quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 5,744 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $838,000 after purchasing an additional 2,054 shares during the period. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC purchased a new position in shares of Leidos during the second quarter worth approximately $126,000. Caprock Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Leidos in the 2nd quarter valued at $413,000. Ballentine Partners LLC raised its position in Leidos by 7.3% in the 2nd quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 1,760 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $257,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Choreo LLC boosted its stake in Leidos by 13.8% during the 2nd quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 3,116 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $454,000 after purchasing an additional 378 shares during the period. 76.12% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Leidos

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

Leidos Price Performance

NYSE LDOS traded down $1.93 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $145.37. The stock had a trading volume of 537,144 shares, compared to its average volume of 953,154. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $163.06 and a 200 day simple moving average of $157.84. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The company has a market cap of $19.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.56, a P/E/G ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 0.66. Leidos Holdings, Inc. has a 52-week low of $107.73 and a 52-week high of $202.90.

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The aerospace company reported $2.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.96 by $0.97. The business had revenue of $4.19 billion during 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 business’s revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.03 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Leidos Holdings, Inc. will post 9.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Leidos Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This is an increase from Leidos’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.10%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 16th. Leidos’s payout ratio is currently 18.22%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Leidos from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. TD Cowen lowered shares of Leidos from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $200.00 to $165.00 in a research report on Wednesday. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded shares of Leidos from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $228.00 to $153.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Leidos from $145.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of Leidos in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. They set a “neutral” rating and a $182.00 price target on the stock. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $179.07.

About Leidos

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.