Leonardo DRS (NASDAQ:DRS) Shares Gap Up After Strong Earnings

Leonardo DRS, Inc. (NASDAQ:DRS) gapped up prior to trading on Thursday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $35.50, but opened at $37.78. Leonardo DRS shares last traded at $38.5310, with a volume of 166,937 shares traded.

The company reported $0.46 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.35 by $0.11. Leonardo DRS had a net margin of 8.52% and a return on equity of 12.97%. The company had revenue of $1.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.03 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.29 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

DRS has been the subject of a number of research reports. Guggenheim started coverage on shares of Leonardo DRS in a research note on Monday, September 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $51.00 target price for the company. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Leonardo DRS from $47.00 to $44.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Leonardo DRS from $48.00 to $53.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Oppenheimer assumed coverage on shares of Leonardo DRS in a report on Thursday, October 22nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $45.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered Leonardo DRS from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Leonardo DRS currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $51.57.

Insider Activity at Leonardo DRS

In related news, CFO Michael Dippold sold 20,317 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.18, for a total transaction of $755,386.06. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 35,143 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,306,616.74. This trade represents a 36.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Jason Rinsky sold 3,864 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.81, for a total value of $177,009.84. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 23,581 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,080,245.61. This trade represents a 14.08% 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. Corporate insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Leonardo DRS

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Leonardo DRS by 9.2% in the 3rd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 24,805 shares of the company’s stock worth $909,000 after purchasing an additional 2,090 shares during the period. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al lifted its holdings in Leonardo DRS by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al now owns 48,250 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,767,000 after purchasing an additional 1,900 shares in the last quarter. VestGen Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Leonardo DRS during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $261,000. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Leonardo DRS in the 3rd quarter valued at $475,000. Finally, Tower View Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Leonardo DRS by 4.3% in the third quarter. Tower View Wealth Management LLC now owns 95,871 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,512,000 after buying an additional 3,936 shares in the last quarter. 18.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Leonardo DRS Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $10.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.08 and a beta of 0.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 1.56 and a current ratio of 1.92. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $36.83 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $42.20.

Leonardo DRS Company Profile

Leonardo DRS, Inc is a defense technology company that develops and supplies advanced products and systems for the U.S. military and government customers, as well as allied nations. The company operates as a subsidiary of Leonardo S.p.A. and focuses on technologies used in land, sea, air and space-related defense applications.

Its offerings include sensing and surveillance systems, electro-optical and infrared technologies, radar and electronic warfare products, network computing and communications systems, counter-uncrewed aircraft systems, force protection equipment, and naval power and propulsion systems.