Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS) Shares Sold by Sawgrass Asset Management LLC

Sawgrass Asset Management LLC reduced its stake in shares of Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS) by 29.3% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 41,725 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 17,269 shares during the quarter. Sawgrass Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Leidos were worth $6,011,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Rakuten Securities Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Leidos by 1,460.0% in the third quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 156 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 146 shares during the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Leidos in the third quarter worth $29,000. Berbice Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Leidos in the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Leidos in the third quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Mather Group LLC. raised its holdings in shares of Leidos by 143.1% in the fourth quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 265 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 156 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.12% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Noel B. Geer purchased 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $161.13 per share, for a total transaction of $322,260.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 2,000 shares in the company, valued at $322,260. The trade was a ? increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.96% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. UBS Group cut their price target on Leidos from $162.00 to $156.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Barclays lifted their price objective on Leidos from $165.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Cantor Fitzgerald started coverage on Leidos in a research report on Friday, February 7th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $185.00 price objective for the company. TD Cowen downgraded Leidos from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $200.00 to $165.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded Leidos from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $228.00 to $153.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $176.27.

Leidos Stock Down 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE LDOS opened at $136.82 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $148.78 and a 200 day moving average price of $157.63. The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. Leidos Holdings, Inc. has a 12-month low of $118.40 and a 12-month high of $202.90. The company has a market cap of $18.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.58, a P/E/G ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 0.66.

Leidos (NYSE:LDOS) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The aerospace company reported $2.37 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.24 by $0.13. Leidos had a return on equity of 30.31% and a net margin of 7.37%. Research analysts anticipate that Leidos Holdings, Inc. will post 10.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Leidos Announces Dividend

The business 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. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Leidos’s dividend payout ratio is presently 18.22%.

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.