Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS) Shares Sold by New York State Teachers Retirement System

New York State Teachers Retirement System lessened its stake in Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS) by 2.8% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 135,174 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 3,874 shares during the quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System owned 0.10% of Leidos worth $22,033,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Boston Partners increased its holdings in shares of Leidos by 5.8% in the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,430,264 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $449,592,000 after purchasing an additional 188,458 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Leidos by 156.5% in the 2nd 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. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its holdings in shares of Leidos by 51.2% in the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 837,370 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $136,491,000 after purchasing an additional 283,558 shares in the last quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Leidos by 39.7% in the 2nd quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 782,161 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $114,102,000 after purchasing an additional 222,179 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Leidos by 76.9% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 698,807 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $101,942,000 after purchasing an additional 303,775 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.12% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of Leidos from $145.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Leidos from $194.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Truist Financial raised their target price on shares of Leidos from $175.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Leidos from $183.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Leidos from $205.00 to $228.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. 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, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $187.77.

Leidos Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE LDOS opened at $182.97 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $24.41 billion, a PE ratio of 20.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 0.70. Leidos Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $100.17 and a 12 month high of $188.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 1.23 and a quick ratio of 1.11. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $163.05 and a 200-day simple moving average of $151.19.

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The aerospace company reported $2.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.06 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.03 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Leidos Holdings, Inc. will post 9.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Leidos Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th will be given a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. This is a boost from Leidos’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.87%. Leidos’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 17.31%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Robert C. Kovarik, Jr. sold 1,047 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 approximately $1,185,095.52. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Leidos news, Director Gary Stephen May sold 1,000 shares of Leidos stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.02, for a total transaction of $144,020.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,264 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,622,241.28. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Robert C. Kovarik, Jr. sold 1,047 shares of Leidos stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $184.94, for a total transaction of $193,632.18. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 6,408 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,185,095.52. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.96% 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.