Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) Shares Bought by NBW Capital LLC

NBW Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 3.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 8,063 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after buying an additional 275 shares during the period. NBW Capital LLC’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $3,775,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. London Co. of Virginia acquired a new stake in Northrop Grumman during the 3rd quarter worth about $165,786,000. Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 74.7% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,174,556 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $517,028,000 after buying an additional 502,060 shares during the period. Raymond James Trust N.A. raised its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 19.7% during the 4th quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 16,515 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $7,731,000 after buying an additional 2,723 shares during the period. Phraction Management LLC acquired a new stake in Northrop Grumman during the 3rd quarter worth about $677,000. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC raised its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 2,801.7% during the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 330,499 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $154,720,000 after buying an additional 319,109 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Susquehanna dropped their target price on Northrop Grumman from $560.00 to $540.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 26th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $450.00 target price (down previously from $515.00) on shares of Northrop Grumman in a report on Friday, January 26th. Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on Northrop Grumman from $505.00 to $475.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 26th. StockNews.com downgraded Northrop Grumman from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, January 29th. Finally, TheStreet downgraded Northrop Grumman from a “b+” rating to a “c+” rating in a report on Thursday, January 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $494.33.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 1,273 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $450.37, for a total value of $573,321.01. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 2,735 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,231,761.95. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 1,273 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $450.37, for a total value of $573,321.01. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 2,735 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,231,761.95. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Michael A. Hardesty sold 210 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,127 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,421,784.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 3,149 shares of company stock valued at $1,421,147. 0.22% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

Northrop Grumman stock traded down $0.02 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $452.03. 293,225 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 980,574. The firm has a market cap of $66.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.52, a PEG ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a current ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $459.54 and a 200 day moving average of $464.20. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 12 month low of $414.56 and a 12 month high of $496.89.

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

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 26th were given a dividend of $1.87 per share. 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 1.65%. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is currently 55.49%.

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.