Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume – Time to Buy?

Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS) saw an uptick in trading volume on Wednesday . 2,089,543 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 81% from the previous session’s volume of 1,155,201 shares.The stock last traded at $142.00 and had previously closed at $134.96.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LDOS has been the subject of several recent research reports. Truist Financial cut their target price on shares of Leidos from $185.00 to $165.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Cantor Fitzgerald raised shares of Leidos to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. StockNews.com cut Leidos from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 8th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Leidos from $197.00 to $191.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, TD Cowen lowered Leidos from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $200.00 to $165.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Leidos presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $178.07.

Leidos Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $18.20 billion, a PE ratio of 15.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.72. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $136.59 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $153.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.21.

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The aerospace company reported $2.37 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.24 by $0.13. Leidos had a return on equity of 30.93% and a net margin of 7.53%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Leidos Holdings, Inc. will post 10.62 EPS for the current year.

Leidos Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.13%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. Leidos’s dividend payout ratio is currently 17.32%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Leidos

In other Leidos news, Director Robert C. Kovarik, Jr. sold 1,511 shares of Leidos stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $134.56, for a total value of $203,320.16. Following the sale, the director now owns 6,408 shares in the company, valued at $862,260.48. The trade was a 19.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Gary Stephen May sold 2,128 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $131.24, for a total value of $279,278.72. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 11,264 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,478,287.36. The trade was a 15.89 % 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.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Leidos

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of LDOS. Private Advisor Group LLC grew its stake in Leidos by 83.0% during the 4th quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 8,167 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,177,000 after purchasing an additional 3,703 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of Leidos by 39.6% during the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 12,464 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,800,000 after buying an additional 3,534 shares in the last quarter. LGT Fund Management Co Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Leidos during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,979,000. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. acquired a new stake in Leidos in the third quarter valued at approximately $4,622,000. Finally, Sanctuary Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Leidos by 99.9% in the third quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 27,644 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $4,575,000 after acquiring an additional 13,818 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.