Van ECK Associates Corp Acquires 28,062 Shares of Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS)

Van ECK Associates Corp grew its stake in Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS) by 53.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 80,876 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after buying an additional 28,062 shares during the quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp owned 0.06% of Leidos worth $8,754,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LDOS. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd grew its position in Leidos by 1.1% in the third quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 10,858 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,001,000 after purchasing an additional 122 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC grew its holdings in shares of Leidos by 9.3% in the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,592 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $147,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd increased its position in shares of Leidos by 10.5% in the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,444 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $133,000 after acquiring an additional 137 shares during the last quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Leidos by 0.8% during the third quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC now owns 19,735 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,819,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hohimer Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Leidos by 1.0% during the third quarter. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC now owns 16,257 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,498,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares during the last quarter. 76.12% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Leidos Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE:LDOS opened at $141.65 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $19.15 billion, a PE ratio of 61.06, a P/E/G ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a quick ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07. Leidos Holdings, Inc. has a 12-month low of $76.58 and a 12-month high of $143.35. The business has a 50 day moving average of $128.80 and a 200-day moving average of $114.92.

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The aerospace company reported $2.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.70 by $0.59. The business had revenue of $3.98 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.82 billion. Leidos had a return on equity of 25.66% and a net margin of 2.04%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.47 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Leidos Holdings, Inc. will post 8.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Leidos Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 14th will be paid a $0.38 dividend. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.07%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 14th. Leidos’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 65.52%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Leidos from $137.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. TheStreet upgraded shares of Leidos from a “c” rating to a “b” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 13th. Argus increased their price target on shares of Leidos from $120.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 20th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on shares of Leidos from $138.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of Leidos from $145.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $141.17.

Insider Buying and Selling at Leidos

In other news, Director David G. Fubini sold 7,874 shares of Leidos stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $127.89, for a total value of $1,007,005.86. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 14,696 shares in the company, valued at $1,879,471.44. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Leidos news, Director Gary Stephen May sold 2,745 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.49, for a total transaction of $341,725.05. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 11,352 shares in the company, valued at $1,413,210.48. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director David G. Fubini sold 7,874 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $127.89, for a total transaction of $1,007,005.86. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 14,696 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,879,471.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.96% 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.