Wells Fargo & Company Cuts Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) Price Target to $205.00

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) had its price objective trimmed by Wells Fargo & Company from $230.00 to $205.00 in a research report released on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an overweight rating on the aerospace company’s stock.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Leidos from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of Leidos from $180.00 to $218.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Leidos from $175.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Leidos from $194.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Leidos from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Leidos presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $187.77.

Leidos Trading Down 1.3 %

Shares of LDOS stock opened at $163.97 on Tuesday. Leidos has a twelve month low of $105.52 and a twelve month high of $202.90. The company has a market capitalization of $21.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.68, a PEG ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 0.68. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $171.13 and a 200 day moving average price of $156.67. 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 (NYSE:LDOS) last posted 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. Leidos had a net margin of 7.37% and a return on equity of 30.31%. The business had revenue of $4.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.06 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.03 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Leidos will post 10.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Leidos Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.98%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 16th. This is a boost from Leidos’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. Leidos’s dividend payout ratio is currently 17.31%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Robert C. Kovarik, Jr. sold 1,047 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $184.94, for a total value of $193,632.18. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 6,408 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,185,095.52. This represents a 14.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Surya N. Mohapatra sold 2,748 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.97, for a total transaction of $535,777.56. Following the transaction, the director now owns 20,001 shares in the company, 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. Insiders own 0.96% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Leidos

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Ballentine Partners LLC raised its stake in Leidos by 3.5% during the third quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 1,822 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $297,000 after buying an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. Key Financial Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Leidos by 6.5% in the 2nd quarter. Key Financial Inc now owns 1,141 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $166,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the period. Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD. grew its position in shares of Leidos by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD. now owns 2,280 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $372,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Somerset Trust Co raised its stake in Leidos by 3.5% during the third quarter. Somerset Trust Co now owns 2,429 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $396,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares during the period. Finally, Apella Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Leidos by 0.8% in the third quarter. Apella Capital LLC now owns 11,366 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,878,000 after acquiring an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.12% of the company’s stock.

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.