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

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Noel B. Geer acquired 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $161.13 per share, with a total value of $322,260.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 2,000 shares of the company’s stock, 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 can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Surya N. Mohapatra sold 2,748 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $194.97, for a total transaction of $535,777.56. Following the completion of the sale, 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 position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.96% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in Leidos by 30.3% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 346,690 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $58,459,000 after purchasing an additional 80,642 shares during the period. Tidal Investments LLC raised its position in shares of Leidos by 16.7% in the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 13,191 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $2,150,000 after buying an additional 1,883 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in Leidos during the third quarter valued at $311,000. World Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in Leidos by 18.3% during the third quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,395 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $553,000 after buying an additional 526 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sanctuary Advisors LLC grew its position in Leidos by 99.9% during the third quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 27,644 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $4,575,000 after buying an additional 13,818 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.12% of the company’s stock.

Leidos Stock Performance

Shares of LDOS traded up $1.43 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $165.40. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 620,279 shares, compared to its average volume of 934,814. The company has a market cap of $22.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.83, a PEG ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 1.23 and a quick ratio of 1.15. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $171.29 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $156.80. Leidos has a 52-week low of $105.52 and a 52-week high of $202.90.

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 29th. The aerospace company reported $2.93 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.96 by $0.97. The business had revenue of $4.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.06 billion. Leidos had a net margin of 7.37% and a return on equity of 30.31%. Leidos’s revenue was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.03 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Leidos will post 10.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Leidos Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th will be issued 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.97%. Leidos’s dividend payout ratio is 18.22%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on LDOS shares. Barclays upped their target price on Leidos from $165.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Citigroup upped their price objective on Leidos from $194.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Leidos from $230.00 to $205.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. TD Cowen boosted their price target on shares of Leidos from $175.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Leidos from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Two investment 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, Leidos presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $187.77.

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.