Kratos Defense & Security Solutions (NASDAQ:KTOS) Director Sells $635,000.00 in Stock

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:KTOS) Director Scot Jarvis sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.50, for a total transaction of $635,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 65,123 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,135,310.50. The trade was a 13.31% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions Stock Down 7.2%

KTOS stock traded down $4.38 during trading on Thursday, hitting $56.18. 4,552,794 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,976,278. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 330.47 and a beta of 1.08. Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. has a 1 year low of $43.09 and a 1 year high of $134.00. The company has a quick ratio of 4.99, a current ratio of 5.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $52.77 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $66.85.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions (NASDAQ:KTOS) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The aerospace company reported $0.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $458.80 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $410.36 million. Kratos Defense & Security Solutions had a return on equity of 3.07% and a net margin of 2.03%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 30.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.11 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. will post 0.57 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on KTOS shares. Jefferies Financial Group set a $105.00 price target on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from a “hold (c)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Citigroup restated a “market outperform” rating on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $100.00 to $89.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Finally, Citizens Jmp decreased their price objective on Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $125.00 to $105.00 and set a “market outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have given a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Kratos Defense & Security Solutions has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $99.47.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Kratos received multi-million-dollar orders through its Orbit subsidiary for GAIA 100 tri-band satellite ground-station systems. The orders support demand for the company’s space communications and tracking technologies. Kratos Receives Multi-Million-Dollar Orders for GAIA 100 Tri-Band Ground Station Systems
• Positive Sentiment: Recent second-quarter results remained strong, with revenue up 30.5% year over year to $458.8 million and EPS of $0.21, above the $0.14 consensus estimate. Growth was broad-based across government solutions, defense rocket support, turbine technology and microwave products. Kratos: A Production Powerhouse That No Longer Feels Speculative
• Neutral Sentiment: Kratos’ backlog, capacity expansion and exposure to unmanned systems, hypersonics and satellite communications support its long-term growth outlook. However, investors are demanding continued execution and margin improvement, while the stock’s elevated earnings multiple leaves limited room for disappointment.
• Neutral Sentiment: China reportedly asked the United States to remove new tariffs on drones and related components. The development highlights ongoing trade-policy uncertainty for defense and drone companies, although its direct effect on Kratos is unclear. China Reportedly Presses U.S. to Scrap Drone Tariffs
• Negative Sentiment: Insiders have reported numerous sales and no open-market purchases over the past six months. Recent transactions included Phillip Carrai’s sale of 26,500 shares and SVP Marie Mendoza’s sale of 1,513 shares. Both were made under pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plans, reducing their value as discretionary bearish signals, but the selling can still weigh on sentiment. Kratos Insider Selling
• Negative Sentiment: Institutional positioning was mixed in the latest quarter, with more funds reducing positions than adding shares. Large reductions by BlackRock, Franklin Resources and other managers may reinforce short-term selling pressure.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kratos Defense & Security Solutions

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,446,230 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $337,565,000 after purchasing an additional 148,622 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley raised its holdings in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 3,311,095 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $251,345,000 after buying an additional 124,607 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 7.4% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,046,194 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $278,331,000 after buying an additional 209,189 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 13.6% during the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 2,072,700 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $189,383,000 after buying an additional 247,652 shares during the period. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LLC grew its holdings in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 7,701.6% during the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 1,593,549 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $120,966,000 after buying an additional 1,573,123 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.