Empowered Funds LLC Increases Stake in Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS)

Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in Leidos Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LDOS) by 2,141.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 75,840 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 72,456 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC owned about 0.06% of Leidos worth $10,926,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. State Street Corp increased its stake in Leidos by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,800,357 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $945,458,000 after purchasing an additional 56,066 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in shares of Leidos by 13.1% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 3,504,392 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $571,216,000 after buying an additional 405,256 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Leidos by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,365,903 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $546,912,000 after buying an additional 42,358 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its position in shares of Leidos by 27.8% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,405,726 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $392,133,000 after buying an additional 522,764 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its position in shares of Leidos by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,153,420 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $351,007,000 after buying an additional 53,307 shares during the last quarter. 76.12% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Leidos from $205.00 to $199.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Leidos from $194.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. TD Cowen lowered Leidos from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $200.00 to $165.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Truist Financial cut their price objective on Leidos from $205.00 to $185.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on Leidos from $165.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $179.47.

Leidos Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE:LDOS opened at $142.34 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $149.74 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $157.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.21, a PEG ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 0.66. Leidos Holdings, Inc. has a 12-month low of $112.53 and a 12-month high of $202.90. 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 Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.12%. Leidos’s dividend payout ratio is currently 18.22%.

Insider Transactions at Leidos

In other Leidos news, Director Noel B. Geer purchased 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 2,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $322,260. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company 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.