Sanders Capital LLC Increases Position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Sanders Capital LLC grew its stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 0.1% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,282,730 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,371 shares during the period. Northrop Grumman makes up about 1.7% of Sanders Capital LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 19th largest holding. Sanders Capital LLC owned approximately 1.57% of Northrop Grumman worth $1,205,441,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 1,915.9% in the 2nd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 438,521 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $191,173,000 after buying an additional 416,768 shares in the last quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the second quarter valued at about $90,177,000. Marshall Wace LLP acquired a new stake in Northrop Grumman during the second quarter worth about $74,206,000. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board raised its stake in Northrop Grumman by 113.6% during the second quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 296,844 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $129,409,000 after purchasing an additional 157,854 shares during the period. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc boosted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 16.0% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 1,087,913 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $474,276,000 after purchasing an additional 150,367 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Northrop Grumman

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 1,156 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $532.93, for a total value of $616,067.08. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 537 shares in the company, valued at $286,183.41. This represents a 68.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders have sold 1,289 shares of company stock valued at $685,273 over the last quarter. 0.22% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

Northrop Grumman stock opened at $485.27 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $519.87 and its two-hundred day moving average is $487.03. The firm has a market cap of $70.70 billion, a PE ratio of 30.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 52-week low of $418.60 and a 52-week high of $555.57.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The aerospace company reported $7.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.07 by $0.93. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 26.57% and a net margin of 5.79%. The business had revenue of $10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.18 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $6.18 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 25.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be given a $2.06 dividend. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.70%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is presently 51.05%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NOC has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $509.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $560.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Alembic Global Advisors cut Northrop Grumman from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $560.00 price target for the company. in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $614.00 to $643.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $550.56.

Northrop Grumman 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.