Wells Fargo & Company Increases Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) Price Target to $172.00

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) had its price objective raised by Wells Fargo & Company from $168.00 to $172.00 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the aerospace company’s stock.

A number of other brokerages have also issued reports on LDOS. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Leidos from $140.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a sector perform rating in a research note on Wednesday. StockNews.com upgraded Leidos from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note on Saturday, May 4th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on Leidos from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a hold rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on Leidos from $145.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Leidos from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research report on Wednesday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Leidos presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $157.62.

Leidos Stock Down 0.6 %

Shares of Leidos stock traded down $0.85 on Thursday, reaching $143.90. The stock had a trading volume of 229,836 shares, compared to its average volume of 892,393. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $147.25 and a 200 day moving average price of $134.19. Leidos has a 1 year low of $89.22 and a 1 year high of $155.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 62.39, a P/E/G ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a quick ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91.

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The aerospace company reported $2.63 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.27 by $0.36. Leidos had a return on equity of 28.40% and a net margin of 2.72%. The business had revenue of $4.13 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.06 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.80 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Leidos will post 8.85 EPS for the current year.

Leidos Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.38 per share. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 13th. Leidos’s payout ratio is currently 65.52%.

Insider Activity at Leidos

In other Leidos news, insider Roy E. Stevens sold 875 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.67, for a total transaction of $131,836.25. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 44,149 shares in the company, valued at $6,651,929.83. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.96% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Leidos

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in shares of Leidos by 18.3% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 74,671 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $8,082,000 after buying an additional 11,576 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Leidos in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $18,976,000. Twin Tree Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Leidos during the first quarter valued at approximately $2,512,000. Leeward Investments LLC MA boosted its position in Leidos by 4.9% during the first quarter. Leeward Investments LLC MA now owns 166,069 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $21,770,000 after acquiring an additional 7,703 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CHURCHILL MANAGEMENT Corp purchased a new stake in Leidos in the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,900,000. 76.12% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.