Rice Hall James & Associates LLC Cuts Stake in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. $KTOS

Rice Hall James & Associates LLC trimmed its stake in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:KTOS) by 44.6% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 49,570 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 39,963 shares during the quarter. Rice Hall James & Associates LLC’s holdings in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions were worth $4,529,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its holdings in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 13.1% during the 1st quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 2,888 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $86,000 after buying an additional 335 shares during the last quarter. Walleye Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in the 1st quarter worth about $266,000. Comerica Bank raised its holdings in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 3.3% in the 1st quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 130,697 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $3,880,000 after purchasing an additional 4,196 shares during the period. Corebridge Financial Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 5.2% in the 1st quarter. Corebridge Financial Inc. now owns 77,422 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $2,299,000 after purchasing an additional 3,860 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Driehaus Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 120.0% during the 1st quarter. Driehaus Capital Management LLC now owns 1,354,312 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $40,210,000 after purchasing an additional 738,743 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.92% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Stacey G. Rock sold 8,549 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.45, for a total value of $610,826.05. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 30,283 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,163,720.35. This trade represents a 22.02% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Eric M. Demarco sold 200,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.53, for a total transaction of $16,106,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 796,237 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $64,120,965.61. This represents a 20.08% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 672,711 shares of company stock valued at $51,836,005 over the last quarter. 2.37% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions Trading Down 2.8%

KTOS opened at $77.70 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 4.30 and a quick ratio of 3.68. Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. has a 12-month low of $23.90 and a 12-month high of $112.57. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $78.48 and its 200 day moving average price is $69.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.12 billion, a PE ratio of 597.74 and a beta of 1.14.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on KTOS. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. KeyCorp assumed coverage on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a research report on Thursday, December 18th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $90.00 price target for the company. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $85.00 price target on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a report on Thursday, November 6th. Noble Financial reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. Finally, BNP Paribas set a $80.00 target price on Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a research report on Tuesday, November 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $82.53.

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.