LVM Capital Management Ltd. MI Grows Stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

LVM Capital Management Ltd. MI boosted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 4.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 32,602 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,470 shares during the quarter. Northrop Grumman accounts for 1.6% of LVM Capital Management Ltd. MI’s portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest holding. LVM Capital Management Ltd. MI’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $15,300,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd bought a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $604,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 212,514 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $112,222,000 after acquiring an additional 5,334 shares during the last quarter. AIA Group Ltd grew its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 20.0% during the 3rd quarter. AIA Group Ltd now owns 7,458 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $3,938,000 after acquiring an additional 1,242 shares during the period. Aviso Wealth Management grew its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 110.7% during the 2nd quarter. Aviso Wealth Management now owns 1,896 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $827,000 after acquiring an additional 996 shares during the period. Finally, Susquehanna International Securities Ltd. bought a new position in Northrop Grumman in the 2nd quarter worth $1,133,000. Institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Susquehanna cut their price target on Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $521.00 to $587.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. StockNews.com raised shares of Northrop Grumman from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. TD Cowen raised shares of Northrop Grumman to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $550.00 to $500.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $551.40.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 1,156 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $532.93, for a total transaction of $616,067.08. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 537 shares in the company, valued at approximately $286,183.41. This trade represents a 68.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders sold 1,255 shares of company stock valued at $663,859 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

Shares of NYSE NOC traded down $3.07 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $459.14. 283,413 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 699,665. The company’s 50 day moving average is $485.71 and its 200 day moving average is $492.01. Northrop Grumman Co. has a one year low of $418.60 and a one year high of $555.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 0.97. The stock has a market capitalization of $66.89 billion, a PE ratio of 28.45, a P/E/G ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.35.

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

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were given a dividend of $2.06 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.79%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.05%.

Northrop Grumman declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Wednesday, December 11th that authorizes the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the aerospace company to repurchase up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

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.