Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) Shares Acquired by Commerce Bank

Commerce Bank grew its position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 381.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 72,119 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after buying an additional 57,154 shares during the quarter. Commerce Bank’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $33,762,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake in Northrop Grumman by 16.4% during the 3rd quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 43,661 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $19,219,000 after purchasing an additional 6,151 shares in the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 57.5% during the 3rd quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 121,524 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $53,495,000 after buying an additional 44,380 shares during the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman during the 3rd quarter worth about $408,000. Ieq Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 7,228 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $3,181,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lincoln National Corp lifted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 2.5% during the 3rd quarter. Lincoln National Corp now owns 10,901 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $4,799,000 after buying an additional 264 shares during the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Northrop Grumman from $475.00 to $505.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. TheStreet downgraded Northrop Grumman from a “b+” rating to a “c+” rating in a report on Thursday, January 25th. StockNews.com raised Northrop Grumman from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Susquehanna boosted their target price on Northrop Grumman from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Northrop Grumman from $483.00 to $518.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Northrop Grumman presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $514.33.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

Northrop Grumman stock traded up $1.05 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $466.20. 152,001 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 965,550. Northrop Grumman Co. has a twelve month low of $414.56 and a twelve month high of $496.89. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $468.58 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $465.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.13. The firm has a market cap of $68.99 billion, a PE ratio of 32.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.34.

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

Northrop Grumman Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 28th will be paid a dividend of $2.06 per share. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.77%. This is an increase from Northrop Grumman’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.87. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 24th. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is 52.31%.

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.