Kratos Defense & Security Solutions (NASDAQ:KTOS) Shares Down 2.3% – Should You Sell?

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:KTOS) traded down 2.3% on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $58.75 and last traded at $60.56. 2,837,032 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 36% from the average session volume of 4,455,043 shares. The stock had previously closed at $61.99.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on the company. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $134.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $105.00 price objective on Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Citizens Jmp dropped their price objective on shares of 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. BNP Paribas Exane boosted their target price on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $99.00 to $82.00 in a research report on Friday, June 12th. 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 data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $99.47.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions Stock Down 2.3%

The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $52.71 and a 200-day moving average price of $67.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 5.54 and a quick ratio of 4.99. The company has a market capitalization of $11.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 356.24 and a beta of 1.08.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Steven S. Fendley sold 7,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.13, for a total value of $329,910.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 295,120 shares in the company, valued at $13,909,005.60. The trade was a 2.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Deanna H. Lund sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.55, for a total transaction of $242,750.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 280,487 shares in the company, valued at $13,617,643.85. This trade represents a 1.75% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 433,523 shares of company stock worth $26,783,747. Corporate insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Royal Bank of Canada increased its holdings in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 22.6% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 190,481 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $5,655,000 after purchasing an additional 35,098 shares in the last quarter. Amundi bought a new position in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions during the 1st quarter worth approximately $791,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 64.4% during the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 1,315 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 515 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its position in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 178.0% during the 1st quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 3,570 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $108,000 after buying an additional 2,286 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its stake in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 11.7% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 393,614 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $11,686,000 after acquiring an additional 41,265 shares in the last quarter. 75.92% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.