Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) Raised to “Strong-Buy” at StockNews.com

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) was upgraded by stock analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Saturday.

A number of other research firms have also weighed in on LDOS. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Leidos from $125.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 27th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Leidos from $145.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on Leidos from $138.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. TheStreet upgraded shares of Leidos from a “c” rating to a “b” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 13th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Leidos from $137.00 to $147.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $141.17.

Leidos Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:LDOS opened at $141.67 on Friday. Leidos has a twelve month low of $76.58 and a twelve month high of $143.35. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07. The company has a market cap of $19.16 billion, a PE ratio of 61.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 0.66. The company’s 50 day moving average is $129.12 and its 200 day moving average is $115.53.

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 30th. The aerospace company reported $2.29 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.70 by $0.59. Leidos had a net margin of 2.04% and a return on equity of 25.66%. The firm had revenue of $3.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.82 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.47 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Leidos will post 8.36 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Leidos

In other news, Director Gary Stephen May sold 2,745 shares of Leidos stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.49, for a total value of $341,725.05. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 11,352 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,413,210.48. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Leidos news, Director David G. Fubini sold 7,874 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $127.89, for a total value of $1,007,005.86. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 14,696 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,879,471.44. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Gary Stephen May sold 2,745 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.49, for a total value of $341,725.05. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 11,352 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,413,210.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.96% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Leidos

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Farmers & Merchants Trust Co of Chambersburg PA purchased a new position in shares of Leidos during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new stake in shares of Leidos in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Lindbrook Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Leidos by 209.0% during the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 275 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 186 shares during the last quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Leidos during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Tidemark LLC acquired a new position in Leidos in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.12% 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.