Kratos Defense & Security Solutions (NASDAQ:KTOS) Hits New 12-Month Low – Here’s What Happened

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:KTOS) hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $45.42 and last traded at $45.8320, with a volume of 912007 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $48.64.

Key Headlines Impacting Kratos Defense & Security Solutions

Here are the key news stories impacting Kratos Defense & Security Solutions this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Kratos completed its $50 million, 68,000-square-foot Indiana Payload Integration Facility ahead of schedule. The site will manufacture, integrate and test experimental hypersonic payloads, support programs such as MACH-TB, handle up to six payloads simultaneously and create more than 100 high-tech jobs. The facility strengthens Kratos’ hypersonics infrastructure, although the release did not quantify near-term revenue. Kratos Completes Construction of $50 Million State-of-the-Art Hypersonic Systems Payload Integration Facility
• Positive Sentiment: The company delivered turbomachinery for Lockheed Martin’s ramjet propulsion system, marking progress on an important defense-program component and reinforcing Kratos’ role as a supplier of advanced propulsion technology. Financial terms and the potential earnings contribution were not disclosed. Kratos Defense Says it Delivered Turbomachinery for Lockheed Martin’s Ramjet Propulsion System
• Positive Sentiment: An analyst described Kratos as offering “outstanding relative value” compared with Anduril and suggested the stock could nearly triple. Recent analyst targets supplied in the coverage range from $75 to $105, well above the recent trading level, indicating continued long-term optimism about defense and hypersonics growth. Kratos Offers Outstanding Relative Value Over Anduril
• Neutral Sentiment: Ahead of next week’s earnings release, analysts expect earnings to grow, but Zacks said KTOS lacks the combination of factors that typically precedes a likely earnings beat. That raises the risk of a muted reaction despite the company’s previous quarterly revenue growth and EPS outperformance. Kratos Earnings Expected to Grow
• Negative Sentiment: Reported insider activity shows extensive selling and no purchases over the past six months. While sales may reflect scheduled transactions or diversification, the absence of insider buying can reinforce investor caution, particularly given KTOS’s elevated valuation and low profit margin.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on KTOS shares. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and set a $82.00 price objective on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Citigroup restated a “market outperform” rating on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a research note on Tuesday. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $80.00 price objective on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price objective on Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $100.00 to $80.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Wedbush began coverage on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $85.00 price objective for the company. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $101.29.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions Stock Down 7.5%

The business has a fifty day moving average of $53.37 and a 200 day moving average of $74.03. The company has a market capitalization of $8.44 billion, a PE ratio of 266.24 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.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions (NASDAQ:KTOS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The aerospace company reported $0.16 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.13 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $371.00 million for 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%.The company’s revenue was up 22.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.12 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. will post 0.48 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Kratos Defense & Security Solutions

In other Kratos Defense & Security Solutions news, insider Jonah Adelman sold 31,348 shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions stock in a transaction 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 directly owned 8,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $456,480. The trade was a 79.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Deanna H. Lund sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.74, for a total value of $318,700.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 290,161 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,494,862.14. The trade was a 1.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders sold 137,036 shares of company stock worth $7,780,257. Insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ausbil Investment Management Ltd acquired a new position in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $296,000. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 4.0% in the 2nd quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 72,660 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $3,623,000 after buying an additional 2,808 shares in the last quarter. Polianta Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in the second quarter valued at approximately $1,600,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its position in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 80.2% during the second quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 70,254 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $3,503,000 after buying an additional 31,273 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Byrne Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in the 2nd quarter valued at about $124,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.92% of the company’s stock.

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.