Leidos Holdings, Inc. · LDOS · FY2026 Q2 · Calendar Q3 2026
Leidos raises guidance as defense bookings accelerate
The supplied Q2 analysis supports a constructive near-term operating thesis for Leidos: defense bookings, new program opportunities, and raised full-year guidance strengthen the growth case. That case is balanced by health-segment payment uncertainty, possible in-sourcing, government funding risk, and execution demands.
Earnings scorecard
Reported versus consensusMarket reaction
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Transcript intelligence
What changed
Compared with the supplied prior-quarter analysis, Leidos moved from a prior expected Q2 revenue and margin low point to reported 7% year-over-year revenue growth, record operating cash flow, stronger defense bookings, and further raised full-year guidance. The current analysis also identifies a $12 billion digital-opportunity pipeline and a framework agreement exceeding $1 billion for 3,000 low-cost containerized munitions by 2030.
Guidance delta
Management raised full-year revenue, EPS, and operating cash-flow guidance; the supplied analysis puts full-year capex at $250 million.
Key takeaways
- Q2 revenue grew 7% year over year to $4.6 billion, while adjusted EBITDA margin was 13.8% and operating cash flow reached a record $793 million.
- Defense momentum strengthened, with book-to-bill above 2 and new opportunities in munitions, unmanned vessels, and satellite payloads.
- Health execution remains a watch item because VBA incentive payments are suspended, although management expects stable margins and contract extensions.
- Capital allocation remains focused on modest capex, share repurchases, and the pending SES-Analogic joint venture.
Management priorities
- Scale containerized munitions and small cruise missile production.
- Advance the medium unmanned surface vessel program and satellite payload opportunities.
- Expand secure AI and cloud services through the CoreWeave partnership.
- Support MHS GENESIS and the My Service Treatment Record pilot while pursuing health-services growth.
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Analyst 52W Price Targets
Latest persisted target per named analyst; persisted current price from FN2's market snapshot as of Sep 23, 2026. Not an FN2 forecast.
Firm-level rating actions
FMP grade actions identify the grading firm, not a named analyst.
| Firm | Rating | Prior rating | Action | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| B of A Securities | Neutral | Neutral | Maintain | Sep 18, 2026 |
| Goldman Sachs | Neutral | Neutral | Maintain | Aug 12, 2026 |
| Citigroup | Buy | Buy | Maintain | Aug 11, 2026 |
| TD Cowen | Hold | Hold | Maintain | Aug 7, 2026 |
| UBS | Neutral | Neutral | Maintain | Aug 5, 2026 |
| RBC Capital | Outperform | Outperform | Maintain | Aug 5, 2026 |
| BNP Paribas | Outperform | Outperform | Maintain | Aug 5, 2026 |
| JP Morgan | Overweight | Overweight | Maintain | Jul 13, 2026 |
| Truist Securities | Buy | Buy | Maintain | Jul 10, 2026 |
| Jefferies | Hold | Hold | Maintain | Jul 1, 2026 |
| Stifel | Hold | Hold | Maintain | May 6, 2026 |
| Baird | Neutral | Neutral | Maintain | Feb 18, 2026 |
| Cantor Fitzgerald | Overweight | Overweight | Maintain | Oct 31, 2025 |
| Argus Research | Buy | Buy | Maintain | Sep 24, 2025 |
| Wells Fargo | Overweight | Overweight | Maintain | May 8, 2025 |
| William Blair | Market Perform | Outperform | Downgrade | Feb 21, 2025 |
| Barclays | Overweight | Overweight | Maintain | Nov 4, 2024 |
| Morgan Stanley | Equal Weight | Equal Weight | Maintain | Feb 15, 2023 |
| Credit Suisse | Outperform | Outperform | Maintain | Feb 24, 2021 |
| SunTrust Robinson Humphrey | Buy | Buy | Maintain | Apr 14, 2020 |
| Stifel Nicolaus | Buy | Hold | Upgrade | Mar 2, 2020 |
| Citi | Neutral | Buy | Downgrade | Jul 9, 2019 |
| Argus | Buy | Buy | Maintain | Oct 29, 2018 |
| Vertical Research | Buy | Buy | Maintain | Mar 17, 2017 |
| Oppenheimer | Outperform | Outperform | Maintain | Dec 6, 2016 |
| Deutsche Bank | Hold | Hold | Maintain | Feb 23, 2016 |
| Drexel Hamilton | Buy | Hold | Upgrade | Nov 2, 2015 |
| BB&T Capital | Buy | Hold | Upgrade | Oct 29, 2015 |
Named analyst price targets
Upside is calculated against the persisted current price $123.31. FMP does not supply a rating on these named-analyst rows.
| Firm | Analyst | 52W target | Price when posted | Upside | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cowen & Co. | Analyst unavailable | $135 | $133.05 | +9.5% | Sep 8, 2026 |
| Wells Fargo | David Strauss | $165 | $143.83 | +33.8% | Aug 17, 2026 |
| Goldman Sachs | Noah Poponak | $132 | $140.89 | +7.0% | Aug 12, 2026 |
| Jefferies | Analyst unavailable | $145 | $137.57 | +17.6% | Aug 9, 2026 |
| Robert W. Baird | Analyst unavailable | $150 | $130.6 | +21.6% | Aug 5, 2026 |
| RBC Capital | Ken Herbert | $170 | $130.6 | +37.9% | Aug 5, 2026 |
| Goldman Sachs | Analyst unavailable | $152 | $106.58 | +23.3% | Jul 14, 2026 |
| Truist Financial | Tobey Sommer | $160 | $106.24 | +29.8% | Jul 10, 2026 |
| Jefferies | Analyst unavailable | $110 | $104.81 | -10.8% | Jul 1, 2026 |
| Wells Fargo | Analyst unavailable | $125 | $113.58 | +1.4% | Jun 17, 2026 |
| Jefferies | Sheila Kahyaoglu | $140 | $126.82 | +13.5% | Jun 3, 2026 |
| BNP Paribas | Analyst unavailable | $165 | $131.78 | +33.8% | May 27, 2026 |
| Jefferies | Analyst unavailable | $185 | $160.64 | +50.0% | Apr 8, 2026 |
| Jefferies | Sheila Kahyaoglu | $215 | $173.5 | +74.4% | Feb 23, 2026 |
| RBC Capital | Ken Herbert | $215 | $164.41 | +74.4% | Feb 18, 2026 |
| Robert W. Baird | Analyst unavailable | $195 | $166.2 | +58.1% | Feb 18, 2026 |
| Stifel Nicolaus | Analyst unavailable | $205 | $161.53 | +66.2% | Feb 18, 2026 |
| UBS | Analyst unavailable | $204 | $190.13 | +65.4% | Jan 15, 2026 |
| Stifel Nicolaus | Jonathan Siegmann | $220 | $196.61 | +78.4% | Jan 7, 2026 |
| RBC Capital | Analyst unavailable | $230 | $195.59 | +86.5% | Nov 5, 2025 |
| UBS | Gavin Parsons | $216 | $199.22 | +75.2% | Nov 5, 2025 |
| Truist Financial | Analyst unavailable | $220 | $201.57 | +78.4% | Nov 4, 2025 |
| Cantor Fitzgerald | Analyst unavailable | $225 | $192.09 | +82.5% | Oct 31, 2025 |
| Truist Financial | Tobey Sommer | $195 | $185.61 | +58.1% | Sep 30, 2025 |
| RBC Capital | Ken Herbert | $210 | $177.71 | +70.3% | Sep 3, 2025 |
| Stifel Nicolaus | Analyst unavailable | $178 | $150.67 | +44.4% | Jun 23, 2025 |
| UBS | Gavin Parsons | $168 | $154.75 | +36.2% | May 7, 2025 |
| UBS | Gavin Parsons | $182 | $165.4 | +47.6% | Dec 2, 2024 |
| Goldman Sachs | Noah Poponak | $228 | $185.86 | +84.9% | Oct 29, 2024 |
| Truist Financial | Tobey Sommer | $205 | $185.83 | +66.2% | Oct 29, 2024 |
| Citigroup | Jason Gursky | $194 | $167.67 | +57.3% | Oct 10, 2024 |
| RBC Capital | Ken Herbert | $145 | $144.28 | +17.6% | Jul 31, 2024 |
| Stifel Nicolaus | Bert Subin | $170 | $145.98 | +37.9% | Jul 30, 2024 |
| Stifel Nicolaus | Bert Subin | $165 | $146.57 | +33.8% | Jun 24, 2024 |
| RBC Capital | Ken Herbert | $140 | $144.58 | +13.5% | Jun 13, 2024 |
| Barclays | David Strauss | $160 | $141.67 | +29.8% | May 6, 2024 |
| Robert W. Baird | Peter Arment | $180 | $140.22 | +46.0% | May 1, 2024 |
| Barclays | David Strauss | $130 | $110.17 | +5.4% | Jan 8, 2024 |
| Morgan Stanley | Analyst unavailable | $111 | $104.71 | -10.0% | Jan 3, 2023 |
| Morgan Stanley | Analyst unavailable | $112 | $107.32 | -9.2% | Dec 14, 2022 |
| Citigroup | Analyst unavailable | $130 | $109.57 | +5.4% | Dec 8, 2022 |
| RBC Capital | Ken Herbert | $112 | $110.35 | -9.2% | Dec 2, 2022 |
| RBC Capital | Ken Herbert | $106 | $96.32 | -14.0% | Aug 30, 2022 |
| Morgan Stanley | Analyst unavailable | $110 | $99.57 | -10.8% | Aug 3, 2022 |
| Wells Fargo | Analyst unavailable | $105 | $100.48 | -14.8% | Aug 3, 2022 |
| Wells Fargo | Analyst unavailable | $109 | $103.43 | -11.6% | May 4, 2022 |
| Cowen & Co. | Cai von Rumohr | $105 | $88.72 | -14.8% | Feb 16, 2022 |
| Barclays | Colin Canfield | $110 | $89.07 | -10.8% | Feb 6, 2022 |
| Capital One Financial | Jonathan Raviv | $120 | $101.27 | -2.7% | May 20, 2021 |
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Start freeCompany context
Snapshot as of publicationLeidos Holdings, Inc., along with its various subsidiaries, delivers a broad spectrum of services and innovative solutions across key markets: defense, intelligence, civil government, and health. The company operates both domestically within the United States and on an international scale. Its operations are organized into three principal divisions: Defense Solutions, Civil, and Health. The Defense Solutions segment is dedicated to providing national security systems and specialized support spanning air, land, sea, space, and cyberspace domains. Its extensive client base includes the U.S. Intelligence Community, the Department of Defense, NASA, various military branches, allied foreign governments, and other federal and commercial entities within the national security sector.…
Historical context
All LDOS earningsTechnology peers this season
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| ADBE Adobe Inc. | FY2026 Q3 · Calendar Q3 2026 | +0.8% | +1.4% | Adobe raises FY26 outlook as AI strategy broadens |
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| SAIL SailPoint, Inc. | FY2027 Q2 · Calendar Q3 2026 | +13.8% | -1.2% | SailPoint pairs 25% ARR growth with accelerating AI-driven adoption |
| CIEN Ciena Corporation | FY2026 Q3 · Calendar Q3 2026 | +22.0% | -10.4% | Ciena raises outlook as AI networking demand lifts backlog |
| DOCU DocuSign, Inc. | FY2027 Q2 · Calendar Q3 2026 | +6.4% | +3.7% | DocuSign Q2 FY27: IAM momentum supports a raised outlook |
| IOT Samsara Inc. | FY2027 Q2 · Calendar Q3 2026 | +25.0% | +3.7% | Samsara: AI adoption expands as FY27 guidance holds |
Latest beats and misses
Who reports nextBeat on EPS
- FPSFY2026 Q4 · September 15, 2026+4.3% EPS+9.5% move
- TCOMFY2026 Q2 · September 15, 2026+22.3% EPS+3.0% move
- KRFY2026 Q2 · September 11, 2026+2.8% EPS+2.7% move
- ADBEFY2026 Q3 · September 10, 2026+0.8% EPS+1.4% move
- ORCLFY2027 Q1 · September 10, 2026+10.3% EPS-1.7% move
- CASYFY2027 Q1 · September 8, 2026+8.7% EPS-14.2% move
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Sources
- Earnings call transcript and parsed analysis · 2026-08-04T20:14:38.262288+00:00
- FN2 earnings calendar · 2026-09-09T01:23:14.388487+00:00
- Polygon adjusted daily market bars · 2026-09-22T23:20:59.074076+00:00
- Financial Modeling Prep analyst price-target consensus and quote snapshot · 2026-09-22T23:20:59.071272+00:00
Methodology
Reported and consensus figures come from FN2's earnings event records. Market reaction and volume are calculated from daily adjusted bars around the event; abnormal move subtracts the SPY move over the same window.
Analyst target low, average, and high values are derived at request time from each named analyst's latest persisted FMP target. The current-price marker comes from FN2's persisted market snapshot. They are sell-side estimates, not an FN2 valuation or recommendation.
Transcript intelligence is a structured synthesis of the current and prior earnings-call analyses. Missing values stay missing and are never estimated.
By FN2 Research · Updated · As of 2026-09-22. For educational purposes only; not investment advice.