Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:KTOS) Receives $98.28 Average Target Price from Analysts

Shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:KTOS) have been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the twenty-two analysts that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, fifteen have assigned a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $98.2778.

KTOS has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group initiated coverage on Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $79.00 target price for the company. BTIG Research increased their price target on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $95.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. B. Riley Financial raised their price objective on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $105.00 to $128.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 9th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $115.00 price objective on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. Finally, Citigroup restated a “market outperform” rating on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions Stock Performance

Shares of KTOS opened at $87.53 on Monday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $100.19 and its 200-day simple moving average is $86.57. The firm has a market cap of $16.35 billion, a PE ratio of 673.36 and a beta of 1.12. Kratos Defense & Security Solutions has a 12-month low of $25.78 and a 12-month high of $134.00. The company has a current ratio of 4.06, a quick ratio of 3.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions (NASDAQ:KTOS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 23rd. The aerospace company reported $0.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $345.10 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $327.51 million. Kratos Defense & Security Solutions had a return on equity of 3.34% and a net margin of 1.63%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 21.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.13 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Kratos Defense & Security Solutions will post 0.31 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Kratos Defense & Security Solutions

In other news, Director Scot B. Jarvis sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.60, for a total transaction of $443,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 85,417 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,567,946.20. This trade represents a 5.53% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider David M. Carter sold 4,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.36, for a total transaction of $341,440.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 81,964 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,996,447.04. The trade was a 4.65% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 579,731 shares of company stock worth $50,949,306 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 2.37% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kratos Defense & Security Solutions

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mcguire Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Bayforest Capital Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in the third quarter valued at about $32,000. Caitlin John LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in the third quarter valued at about $32,000. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp raised its holdings in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 7,600.0% during the 4th quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp now owns 385 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 380 shares during the period. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. acquired a new position in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $38,000. 75.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Kratos Defense & Security Solutions

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc (NASDAQ: KTOS) is a technology-driven company that specializes in national security and defense solutions for government and military customers. The firm’s core capabilities span unmanned systems, satellite communications, missile defense, cyber security, and directed-energy weapons. Through its integrated approach, Kratos delivers mission-critical products and services designed to enhance operational readiness and support force modernization initiatives.

In the unmanned systems arena, Kratos develops high-performance aerial platforms used as target drones, low-cost attritable aircraft and experimental stealth demonstrators.