17,400 Shares in Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS) Acquired by Hennessy Advisors Inc.

Hennessy Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS) in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 17,400 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,348,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Leidos during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. purchased a new position in Leidos during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. REAP Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in Leidos by 422.2% during the 4th quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 188 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 152 shares during the period. Human Investing LLC purchased a new position in Leidos during the 4th quarter worth $52,000. Finally, Sentry Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Leidos during the 1st quarter worth $55,000. 76.12% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Leidos news, Director Gregory R. Dahlberg sold 1,250 shares of Leidos stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.55, for a total transaction of $193,187.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 20,195 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,121,137.25. The trade was a 5.83% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.96% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Leidos Stock Up 0.7%

Shares of LDOS stock opened at $149.12 on Monday. Leidos Holdings, Inc. has a 1-year low of $123.62 and a 1-year high of $202.90. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $147.91 and its 200 day moving average price is $144.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.21 and a quick ratio of 1.13. The company has a market cap of $19.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.63.

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The aerospace company reported $2.97 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.47 by $0.50. Leidos had a return on equity of 30.93% and a net margin of 7.53%. The firm had revenue of $4.25 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.11 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.29 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Leidos Holdings, Inc. will post 10.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Leidos Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.07%. Leidos’s dividend payout ratio is currently 16.10%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on the company. William Blair downgraded Leidos from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on Leidos from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Leidos from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. UBS Group lifted their price target on Leidos from $149.00 to $168.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded Leidos to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Leidos currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $176.46.

Leidos 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.