Kratos Defense & Security Solutions (NASDAQ:KTOS) Hits New 12-Month High After Earnings Beat

Posted by Defense World Staff on Aug 5th, 2023

Shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:KTOS – Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Friday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The company traded as high as $16.42 and last traded at $16.41, with a volume of 598236 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $14.43.

The aerospace company reported $0.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.06 by $0.03. Kratos Defense & Security Solutions had a negative net margin of 3.00% and a positive return on equity of 1.68%. The business had revenue of $256.90 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $235.93 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.03 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 14.6% on a year-over-year basis.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently commented on KTOS shares. Raymond James started coverage on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a report on Thursday, July 20th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $17.00 price target on the stock. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and issued a $20.00 price target on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a report on Monday, April 10th. Finally, StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a report on Thursday, May 18th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $16.00.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Deanna H. Lund sold 105,116 shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.00, for a total transaction of $1,576,740.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 175,457 shares in the company, valued at $2,631,855. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, insider Steven S. Fendley sold 25,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.97, for a total transaction of $349,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 347,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,848,218.65. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Deanna H. Lund sold 105,116 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.00, for a total transaction of $1,576,740.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 175,457 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,631,855. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 174,403 shares of company stock worth $2,568,221 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 2.17% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust grew its position in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 100.0% during the first quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 2,000 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 1,000 shares in the last quarter. Spire Wealth Management grew its position in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 2,500.0% during the first quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 2,600 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 2,500 shares in the last quarter. Ellevest Inc. boosted its holdings in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 92.6% in the first quarter. Ellevest Inc. now owns 2,837 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 1,364 shares during the period. AdvisorNet Financial Inc boosted its holdings in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 36.9% in the first quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 2,970 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 800 shares during the period. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its holdings in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 100.9% in the first quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 3,000 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 1,507 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.85% of the company’s stock.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions Trading Up 15.0 %

The stock has a market cap of $2.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -75.45 and a beta of 0.80. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $14.11 and its 200 day simple moving average is $13.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 2.40 and a quick ratio of 1.85.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc operates as a technology company that addresses the defense, National Security, and commercial markets. The company develops and fields transformative, affordable systems, products, and solutions. It operates through two segments, Kratos Government Solutions and Unmanned Systems.