Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) Stock Holdings Lessened by Crescent Grove Advisors LLC

Crescent Grove Advisors LLC lowered its stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 13.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,140 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 181 shares during the period. Crescent Grove Advisors LLC’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $534,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State of Wyoming raised its stake in Northrop Grumman by 76.5% during the 4th quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 60 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares during the period. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. IMA Wealth Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 196.3% during the 2nd quarter. IMA Wealth Inc. now owns 80 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. Providence Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 400.0% during the 3rd quarter. Providence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 100 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Toth Financial Advisory Corp grew its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 19.1% during the 3rd quarter. Toth Financial Advisory Corp now owns 131 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $58,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Northrop Grumman news, CAO Michael A. Hardesty sold 210 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $454.68, for a total value of $95,482.80. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,127 shares in the company, valued at $1,421,784.36. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other Northrop Grumman news, CAO Michael A. Hardesty sold 955 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $450.37, for a total value of $430,103.35. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 4,137 shares in the company, valued at $1,863,180.69. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO Michael A. Hardesty sold 210 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $454.68, for a total transaction of $95,482.80. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,127 shares in the company, valued at $1,421,784.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 3,149 shares of company stock worth $1,421,147. Company insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Trading Down 0.1 %

NOC stock traded down $0.41 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $450.88. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 127,513 shares, compared to its average volume of 980,909. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 52 week low of $414.56 and a 52 week high of $496.89. The stock has a market cap of $66.82 billion, a PE ratio of 33.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $459.54 and its 200-day simple moving average is $464.22.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 25th. The aerospace company reported $6.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.80 by $0.47. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 5.23% and a return on equity of 23.07%. The firm had revenue of $10.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.43 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $7.50 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 24.67 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 26th were paid a $1.87 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 23rd. This represents a $7.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.66%. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is presently 55.49%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NOC has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. StockNews.com cut shares of Northrop Grumman from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, January 29th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $450.00 price objective (down previously from $515.00) on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $505.00 to $475.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Susquehanna dropped their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $560.00 to $540.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Finally, TheStreet lowered shares of Northrop Grumman from a “b+” rating to a “c+” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $494.33.

Northrop Grumman Company Profile

Northrop Grumman Corporation operates as an aerospace and defense technology company in the United States, Asia/Pacific, Europe, and internationally. The company's Aeronautics Systems segment designs, develops, manufactures, integrates, and sustains aircraft systems. This segment also offers unmanned autonomous aircraft systems, including high-altitude long-endurance strategic ISR systems and vertical take-off and landing tactical ISR systems; and strategic long-range strike aircraft, tactical fighter and air dominance aircraft, and airborne battle management and command and control systems.