Horan Capital Advisors LLC. Sells 275 Shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Horan Capital Advisors LLC. lowered its stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 4.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 6,515 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 275 shares during the period. Horan Capital Advisors LLC.’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $3,050,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. increased its position in Northrop Grumman by 960.0% during the 4th quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 53 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the period. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Northrop Grumman during the 3rd quarter worth $29,000. McIlrath & Eck LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 247.6% during the fourth quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 73 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Providence Capital Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 400.0% in the third 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 during the period. 83.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:NOC opened at $469.09 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $69.42 billion, a PE ratio of 32.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.34. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 52 week low of $414.56 and a 52 week high of $496.89. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $464.96 and its 200-day moving average is $465.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.13.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The aerospace company reported $6.32 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.83 by $0.49. The company had revenue of $10.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.77 billion. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 24.09% and a net margin of 5.38%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $5.50 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 24.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 26th were issued a $1.87 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 23rd. This represents a $7.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.59%. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is currently 52.31%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have weighed in on NOC shares. Alembic Global Advisors upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $532.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. StockNews.com upgraded Northrop Grumman from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $475.00 to $505.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $450.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Finally, TheStreet lowered Northrop Grumman from a “b+” rating to a “c+” rating in a report on Thursday, January 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Northrop Grumman presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $509.38.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 1,273 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction on Friday, February 16th. The shares were 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 owns 2,735 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,231,761.95. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 1,273 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $450.37, for a total transaction of $573,321.01. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 2,735 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,231,761.95. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 711 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $453.22, for a total value of $322,239.42. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 2,024 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $917,317.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 3,149 shares of company stock worth $1,421,147 over the last quarter. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Northrop Grumman

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.