Kratos Defense & Security Solutions (NASDAQ:KTOS) Shares Down 1.9% – What’s Next?

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:KTOS) shares traded down 1.9% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $75.80 and last traded at $75.98. 1,270,275 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 63% from the average session volume of 3,425,876 shares. The stock had previously closed at $77.47.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently commented on the stock. Citigroup reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a research note on Thursday, October 2nd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $70.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, September 26th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating and issued a $85.00 price target on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a research note on Thursday, November 6th. Finally, BTIG Research upped their price objective on Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $80.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Kratos Defense & Security Solutions presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $82.53.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 3.68 and a current ratio of 4.30. The stock has a market cap of $12.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 583.97 and a beta of 1.14. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $77.84 and its 200-day moving average price is $70.46.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions (NASDAQ:KTOS) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The aerospace company reported $0.14 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.12 by $0.02. Kratos Defense & Security Solutions had a return on equity of 3.14% and a net margin of 1.56%.The company had revenue of $347.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $323.01 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.11 EPS. Kratos Defense & Security Solutions’s revenue for the quarter was up 26.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. will post 0.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Kratos Defense & Security Solutions news, CEO Eric M. Demarco sold 200,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.09, for a total value of $14,818,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,196,237 shares in the company, valued at $88,629,199.33. This represents a 14.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Scott I. Anderson sold 15,401 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, December 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.51, for a total transaction of $1,147,528.51. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 66,334 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,942,546.34. This trade represents a 18.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 663,865 shares of company stock worth $50,935,776. 2.37% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kratos Defense & Security Solutions

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 29.6% in the 2nd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 5,086,494 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $236,268,000 after acquiring an additional 1,162,577 shares during the last quarter. ARK Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 22.2% during the second quarter. ARK Investment Management LLC now owns 4,507,692 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $209,382,000 after purchasing an additional 818,104 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 8.3% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,949,763 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $183,490,000 after purchasing an additional 301,135 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 29.5% in the third quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 3,068,863 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $280,402,000 after purchasing an additional 698,778 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 7.4% in 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 in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.92% of the company’s stock.

About Kratos Defense & Security Solutions

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.