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Leidos (LDOS) Laps the Stock Market: Here's Why

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Leidos (LDOS - Free Report) closed the most recent trading day at $184.90, moving +1.39% from the previous trading session. The stock outpaced the S&P 500's daily gain of 0.59%. Elsewhere, the Dow gained 0.65%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq added 0.44%.

Heading into today, shares of the security and engineering company had gained 0.55% over the past month, lagging the Computer and Technology sector's gain of 7.68% and the S&P 500's gain of 2.72%.

The upcoming earnings release of Leidos will be of great interest to investors. In that report, analysts expect Leidos to post earnings of $2.62 per share. This would mark a year-over-year decline of 10.58%. Our most recent consensus estimate is calling for quarterly revenue of $4.28 billion, up 2.06% from the year-ago period.

Regarding the entire year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates forecast earnings of $11.22 per share and revenue of $17.15 billion, indicating changes of +9.89% and +2.95%, respectively, compared to the previous year.

Any recent changes to analyst estimates for Leidos should also be noted by investors. These revisions typically reflect the latest short-term business trends, which can change frequently. Hence, positive alterations in estimates signify analyst optimism regarding the business and profitability.

Our research shows that these estimate changes are directly correlated with near-term stock prices. To take advantage of this, we've established the Zacks Rank, an exclusive model that considers these estimated changes and delivers an operational rating system.

The Zacks Rank system ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell). It has a remarkable, outside-audited track record of success, with #1 stocks delivering an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Over the past month, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 0.26% higher. As of now, Leidos holds a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

Digging into valuation, Leidos currently has a Forward P/E ratio of 16.25. This denotes no noticeable deviation relative to the industry average Forward P/E of 16.25.

We can additionally observe that LDOS currently boasts a PEG ratio of 1.74. Comparable to the widely accepted P/E ratio, the PEG ratio also accounts for the company's projected earnings growth. The Computers - IT Services industry currently had an average PEG ratio of 2 as of yesterday's close.

The Computers - IT Services industry is part of the Computer and Technology sector. At present, this industry carries a Zacks Industry Rank of 103, placing it within the top 42% of over 250 industries.

The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.

You can find more information on all of these metrics, and much more, on Zacks.com.


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