Virtu Financial LLC Makes New $1.55 Million Investment in Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS)

Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new position in Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund acquired 10,726 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,545,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new position in Leidos in the fourth quarter worth $5,167,000. Sciencast Management LP acquired a new position in Leidos in the fourth quarter worth $727,000. ZEGA Investments LLC acquired a new position in Leidos in the fourth quarter worth $294,000. iA Global Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in Leidos by 134.1% in the fourth quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 15,317 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $2,207,000 after purchasing an additional 8,773 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Magnetar Financial LLC acquired a new position in Leidos in the fourth quarter worth $5,645,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.12% of the company’s stock.

Leidos Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of Leidos stock opened at $133.66 on Friday. Leidos Holdings, Inc. has a 1 year low of $123.23 and a 1 year high of $202.90. The business has a 50-day moving average of $139.37 and a two-hundred day moving average of $154.30. The company has a market capitalization of $17.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.21 and a quick ratio of 1.13.

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The aerospace company reported $2.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.24 by $0.13. Leidos had a return on equity of 30.93% and a net margin of 7.53%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Leidos Holdings, Inc. will post 10.62 EPS for the current year.

Leidos Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.20%. Leidos’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 17.32%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LDOS has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. William Blair lowered Leidos from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Truist Financial cut their price target on Leidos from $185.00 to $165.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered Leidos from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price target for the company from $228.00 to $153.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Leidos from $197.00 to $191.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald raised Leidos to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $178.07.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Gary Stephen May sold 2,128 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $131.24, for a total transaction of $279,278.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,264 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,478,287.36. This trade represents a 15.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Robert C. Kovarik, Jr. sold 1,511 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $134.56, for a total value of $203,320.16. Following the transaction, the director now owns 6,408 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $862,260.48. The trade was a 19.08 % 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.