MONECO Advisors LLC Acquires 27 Shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

MONECO Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 5.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 484 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 27 shares during the period. MONECO Advisors LLC’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $227,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in NOC. Two Sigma Advisers LP grew its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 102.6% during the third quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 735,600 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $388,448,000 after purchasing an additional 372,500 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 6.2% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,426,270 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,315,729,000 after acquiring an additional 141,816 shares during the last quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC bought a new position in Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter valued at about $66,171,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter valued at about $622,000. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI boosted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 154.7% in the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 157,601 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $83,224,000 after acquiring an additional 95,724 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on NOC shares. Truist Financial started coverage on Northrop Grumman in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $544.00 price target on the stock. Barclays decreased their price target on Northrop Grumman from $550.00 to $500.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. StockNews.com cut Northrop Grumman from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Northrop Grumman from $595.00 to $574.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Wolfe Research upgraded Northrop Grumman from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $544.56.

Insider Buying and Selling at Northrop Grumman

In other news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 192 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $429.08, for a total transaction of $82,383.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 709 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $304,217.72. This trade represents a 21.31 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 291 shares of company stock worth $129,184. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

Shares of NOC opened at $461.03 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.01. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $469.99 and a 200 day simple moving average of $497.05. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 52-week low of $418.60 and a 52-week high of $555.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $66.74 billion, a PE ratio of 16.27, a P/E/G ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.35.

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

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a $2.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.79%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is presently 29.08%.

Northrop Grumman declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, December 11th that allows the company to buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the aerospace company to purchase up to 4.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

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.