Gibraltar Capital Management Inc. Decreases Position in Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS)

Gibraltar Capital Management Inc. lowered its position in shares of Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS) by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 53,645 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 272 shares during the period. Leidos makes up approximately 3.9% of Gibraltar Capital Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest position. Gibraltar Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Leidos were worth $8,744,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Millennium Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Leidos by 156.5% during the second 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 in the last quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC lifted its stake in Leidos by 1,184.3% during the 2nd quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 501,868 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $73,213,000 after acquiring an additional 462,792 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of 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 valued at $61,459,000 after acquiring an additional 375,495 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Leidos by 76.9% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 698,807 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $101,942,000 after acquiring an additional 303,775 shares during the period. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its holdings in shares of Leidos by 138.5% during the first 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. 76.12% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Leidos from $172.00 to $183.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Leidos from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Leidos from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Leidos from $140.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on Leidos from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $166.92.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Leidos news, Director Gary Stephen May sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.02, for a total value of $144,020.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,264 shares in the company, valued at $1,622,241.28. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, Director Robert C. Kovarik, Jr. sold 1,059 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.23, for a total value of $153,798.57. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 7,455 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,082,689.65. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Gary Stephen May sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.02, for a total value of $144,020.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,264 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,622,241.28. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.96% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Leidos Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE:LDOS opened at $169.73 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $160.48 and a 200 day moving average of $149.88. The company has a market cap of $22.86 billion, a PE ratio of 53.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 0.70. Leidos Holdings, Inc. has a 12-month low of $90.53 and a 12-month high of $171.35. The company has a current ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91.

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The aerospace company reported $2.63 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.27 by $0.36. The business had revenue of $4.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.06 billion. Leidos had a net margin of 2.72% and a return on equity of 28.40%. The company’s revenue was up 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.80 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Leidos Holdings, Inc. will post 8.96 EPS for the current year.

Leidos Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be given a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.94%. This is an increase from Leidos’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 16th. Leidos’s payout ratio is presently 47.65%.

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.