Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Cuts Position in Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS)

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS) by 26.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 881,624 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 312,225 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. owned approximately 0.66% of Leidos worth $143,705,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in LDOS. Rakuten Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in Leidos by 1,460.0% during the third quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 156 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 146 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Leidos in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Leidos in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. 1832 Asset Management L.P. purchased a new position in Leidos in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in Leidos by 251.3% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 281 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 201 shares during the last quarter. 76.12% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Leidos

In other Leidos news, Director Surya N. Mohapatra sold 2,748 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.97, for a total transaction of $535,777.56. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 20,001 shares in the company, valued at $3,899,594.97. The trade was a 12.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Noel B. Geer acquired 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $161.13 per share, with a total value of $322,260.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $322,260. This represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.96% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Leidos Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE:LDOS opened at $165.51 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The firm has a market cap of $22.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.85, a PEG ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 0.68. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $170.36 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $156.32. Leidos Holdings, Inc. has a 12-month low of $105.52 and a 12-month high of $202.90.

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. The business had revenue of $4.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.06 billion. Leidos had a net margin of 7.37% and a return on equity of 30.31%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.03 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Leidos Holdings, Inc. will post 10.04 EPS for the current year.

Leidos Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 16th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.97%. This is a boost from Leidos’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. Leidos’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.31%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on LDOS shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Leidos from $183.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Leidos from $165.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of Leidos from $205.00 to $228.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Leidos from $145.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their target price on Leidos from $180.00 to $218.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $189.69.

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.