Good Life Advisors LLC Sells 211 Shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Good Life Advisors LLC lessened its stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 7.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,643 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 211 shares during the quarter. Good Life Advisors LLC’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $1,240,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of NOC. Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 11.5% in the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 947 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $444,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust bought a new position in Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter valued at about $103,000. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund raised its stake in Northrop Grumman by 93.1% during the fourth quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund now owns 7,861 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $3,689,000 after acquiring an additional 3,791 shares in the last quarter. Key Financial Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 43.8% in the fourth quarter. Key Financial Inc now owns 105 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $49,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 41.2% in the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 476 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $223,000 after purchasing an additional 139 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NOC has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Susquehanna lowered their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. StockNews.com cut Northrop Grumman from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Truist Financial assumed coverage on Northrop Grumman in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $544.00 price objective on the stock. Citigroup increased their target price on Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $544.56.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

NYSE:NOC opened at $433.63 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $62.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.30, a P/E/G ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.35. Northrop Grumman Co. has a twelve month low of $418.60 and a twelve month high of $555.57. The company has a fifty day moving average of $472.52 and a 200-day moving average of $498.17. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.27 by $0.12. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 10.17% and a return on equity of 26.24%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a dividend of $2.06 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.90%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is 29.08%.

Northrop Grumman announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 11th that allows the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the aerospace company to reacquire up to 4.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

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.