Advisors Asset Management Inc. Buys 4,175 Shares of Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS)

Advisors Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS) by 24.8% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 21,004 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,175 shares during the quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Leidos were worth $3,424,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Millennium Management LLC lifted its holdings in Leidos by 156.5% during the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,133,508 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $165,356,000 after purchasing an additional 691,575 shares during the last quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC boosted its holdings in shares of Leidos by 1,184.3% in the 2nd quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 501,868 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $73,213,000 after acquiring an additional 462,792 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in Leidos by 24,194.3% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 377,047 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $61,459,000 after acquiring an additional 375,495 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Leidos by 76.9% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 698,807 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $101,942,000 after purchasing an additional 303,775 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its position in Leidos by 138.5% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 517,498 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $67,840,000 after purchasing an additional 300,486 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.12% of the company’s stock.

Leidos Price Performance

Shares of LDOS opened at $165.55 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $22.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 0.68. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $170.36 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $156.15. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. Leidos Holdings, Inc. has a 1 year low of $105.52 and a 1 year high of $202.90.

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The aerospace company reported $2.93 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.96 by $0.97. The firm had revenue of $4.19 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.06 billion. Leidos had a net margin of 7.37% and a return on equity of 30.31%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.03 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Leidos Holdings, Inc. will post 10.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Leidos Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 16th. This is a positive change from Leidos’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.97%. Leidos’s payout ratio is currently 17.31%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on LDOS. TD Cowen raised their target price on Leidos from $175.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of Leidos from $180.00 to $218.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Leidos from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Leidos from $145.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their target price on Leidos from $194.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned 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 $189.69.

Insider Buying and Selling at Leidos

In other Leidos news, Director Surya N. Mohapatra sold 2,748 shares of Leidos stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the director now owns 20,001 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,899,594.97. The trade was a 12.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Noel B. Geer acquired 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $161.13 per share, with a total value of $322,260.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $322,260. This represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.96% of the company’s stock.

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.