Sepio Capital LP Has $2.64 Million Stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Sepio Capital LP trimmed its stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 5.3% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 5,618 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 313 shares during the quarter. Sepio Capital LP’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $2,636,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC grew its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 42.9% in the third quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 3,715 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,962,000 after purchasing an additional 1,115 shares during the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp increased its position in Northrop Grumman by 3.2% in the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 117,161 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $61,877,000 after buying an additional 3,666 shares during the period. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 111.4% during the third quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 9,419 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $4,974,000 after buying an additional 4,964 shares during the last quarter. Insigneo Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 26.3% in the third quarter. Insigneo Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,732 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $914,000 after acquiring an additional 361 shares during the period. Finally, EP Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 6.0% in the third quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 19,433 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $10,262,000 after acquiring an additional 1,095 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

NYSE:NOC opened at $486.23 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The firm has a market cap of $70.38 billion, a PE ratio of 17.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.31. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 12 month low of $418.60 and a 12 month high of $555.57. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $479.27 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $492.44.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 EPS for the quarter, topping 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%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a $2.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.69%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is 29.08%.

Northrop Grumman declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 11th that permits the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the aerospace company to reacquire up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently commented on NOC shares. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $579.00 to $558.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. StockNews.com lowered Northrop Grumman from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Truist Financial started coverage on Northrop Grumman in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $544.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $545.00 to $547.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Northrop Grumman presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $545.06.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $475.65, for a total value of $1,783,687.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 212,852 shares in the company, valued at $101,243,053.80. The trade was a 1.73 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 192 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $429.08, for a total value of $82,383.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 709 shares in the company, valued at $304,217.72. The trade was a 21.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 4,505 shares of company stock worth $2,126,405 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

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.