Kratos Defense & Security Solutions (NASDAQ:KTOS) Shares Up 4.4% – Should You Buy?

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:KTOS)’s stock price shot up 4.4% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $49.72 and last traded at $49.45. 2,747,338 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 39% from the average daily volume of 4,497,442 shares. The stock had previously closed at $47.35.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $99.00 to $82.00 in a research report on Friday, June 12th. BNP Paribas Exane boosted their target price on Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their target price on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price target on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $100.00 to $80.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Wedbush began coverage on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $85.00 price target for the company. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $101.29.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions Trading Up 4.4%

The stock has a market capitalization of $9.27 billion, a PE ratio of 290.88 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a current ratio of 5.63, a quick ratio of 5.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $53.57 and a 200-day moving average price of $74.63.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions (NASDAQ:KTOS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The aerospace company reported $0.16 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.13 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $371.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $345.00 million. Kratos Defense & Security Solutions had a return on equity of 2.82% and a net margin of 2.08%.Kratos Defense & Security Solutions’s revenue was up 22.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.12 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. will post 0.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Jonah Adelman sold 31,348 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.06, for a total value of $1,788,716.88. Following the transaction, the insider owned 8,000 shares in the company, valued at $456,480. This represents a 79.67% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Stacey G. Rock sold 4,675 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total transaction of $233,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 9,600 shares in the company, valued at approximately $480,000. The trade was a 32.75% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders sold 141,036 shares of company stock valued at $8,024,377. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC purchased a new position in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions during the 2nd quarter worth $25,000. Mcguire Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp raised its holdings in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 7,600.0% in the 4th quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp now owns 385 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 380 shares during the period. Vision Retirement LLC raised its holdings in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 288.2% in the 1st quarter. Vision Retirement LLC now owns 427 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 317 shares during the period. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. purchased a new position in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions during the second quarter valued at $31,000. 75.92% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions Company Profile

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc (NASDAQ: KTOS) is a technology-driven company that specializes in national security and defense solutions for government and military customers. The firm’s core capabilities span unmanned systems, satellite communications, missile defense, cyber security, and directed-energy weapons. Through its integrated approach, Kratos delivers mission-critical products and services designed to enhance operational readiness and support force modernization initiatives.

In the unmanned systems arena, Kratos develops high-performance aerial platforms used as target drones, low-cost attritable aircraft and experimental stealth demonstrators.