Marie Mendoza Sells 1,513 Shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions (NASDAQ:KTOS) Stock

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ:KTOS) SVP Marie Mendoza sold 1,513 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.37, for a total transaction of $97,391.81. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 61,976 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,989,395.12. The trade was a 2.38% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Marie Mendoza also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Monday, June 15th, Marie Mendoza sold 1,500 shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.93, for a total value of $86,895.00.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions Stock Down 7.2%

NASDAQ KTOS opened at $56.18 on Friday. Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. has a 52 week low of $43.09 and a 52 week high of $134.00. The firm has a market cap of $10.55 billion, a PE ratio of 330.47 and a beta of 1.08. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $52.77 and its 200-day simple moving average is $66.85. The company has a quick ratio of 4.99, a current ratio of 5.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04.

Kratos Defense & Security Solutions (NASDAQ:KTOS) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The aerospace company reported $0.21 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.14 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $458.80 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $410.36 million. Kratos Defense & Security Solutions had a net margin of 2.03% and a return on equity of 3.07%. Kratos Defense & Security Solutions’s quarterly revenue was up 30.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.11 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. will post 0.57 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on KTOS shares. Weiss Ratings lowered Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from a “hold (c)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Clear Str upgraded shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and set a $82.00 price target on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Cantor Fitzgerald reduced their price target on shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $115.00 to $100.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their target price on Kratos Defense & Security Solutions from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Kratos Defense & Security Solutions has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $99.47.

Institutional Trading of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in KTOS. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,446,230 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $337,565,000 after buying an additional 148,622 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley boosted its holdings in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 3,311,095 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $251,345,000 after acquiring an additional 124,607 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings 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 valued at $278,331,000 after acquiring an additional 209,189 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 13.6% during the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 2,072,700 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $189,383,000 after acquiring an additional 247,652 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LLC grew its position in shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions by 7,701.6% during the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 1,593,549 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $120,966,000 after acquiring an additional 1,573,123 shares during the last quarter. 75.92% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

More Kratos Defense & Security Solutions News

Here are the key news stories impacting Kratos Defense & Security Solutions this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Kratos received multi-million-dollar orders through its Orbit subsidiary for GAIA 100 tri-band satellite ground-station systems. The orders support demand for the company’s space communications and tracking technologies. Kratos Receives Multi-Million-Dollar Orders for GAIA 100 Tri-Band Ground Station Systems
• Positive Sentiment: Recent second-quarter results remained strong, with revenue up 30.5% year over year to $458.8 million and EPS of $0.21, above the $0.14 consensus estimate. Growth was broad-based across government solutions, defense rocket support, turbine technology and microwave products. Kratos: A Production Powerhouse That No Longer Feels Speculative
• Neutral Sentiment: Kratos’ backlog, capacity expansion and exposure to unmanned systems, hypersonics and satellite communications support its long-term growth outlook. However, investors are demanding continued execution and margin improvement, while the stock’s elevated earnings multiple leaves limited room for disappointment.
• Neutral Sentiment: China reportedly asked the United States to remove new tariffs on drones and related components. The development highlights ongoing trade-policy uncertainty for defense and drone companies, although its direct effect on Kratos is unclear. China Reportedly Presses U.S. to Scrap Drone Tariffs
• Negative Sentiment: Insiders have reported numerous sales and no open-market purchases over the past six months. Recent transactions included Phillip Carrai’s sale of 26,500 shares and SVP Marie Mendoza’s sale of 1,513 shares. Both were made under pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plans, reducing their value as discretionary bearish signals, but the selling can still weigh on sentiment. Kratos Insider Selling
• Negative Sentiment: Institutional positioning was mixed in the latest quarter, with more funds reducing positions than adding shares. Large reductions by BlackRock, Franklin Resources and other managers may reinforce short-term selling pressure.

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.