Gradient Investments LLC Lowers Holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Gradient Investments LLC reduced its stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 3.2% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 27,570 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 902 shares during the quarter. Gradient Investments LLC’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $12,938,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. Albion Financial Group UT purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman in the third quarter valued at $36,000. Modus Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the third quarter worth about $40,000. 83.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Northrop Grumman Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of NOC opened at $497.13 on Friday. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 1-year low of $418.60 and a 1-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 firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $478.60 and a 200-day simple moving average of $495.39. The stock has a market cap of $72.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 0.35.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The aerospace company reported $7.00 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.18 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $6.18 earnings per share. Northrop Grumman’s revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 25.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd were paid a $2.06 dividend. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.66%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 2nd. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is 51.05%.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have weighed in on NOC. Truist Financial initiated coverage on Northrop Grumman in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $544.00 price objective for the company. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $614.00 to $643.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $540.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Citigroup upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $587.00 target price for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, TD Cowen raised Northrop Grumman to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Northrop Grumman has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $550.94.

Insider Buying and Selling at Northrop Grumman

In other news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 1,156 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The shares were 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 $286,183.41. The trade was a 68.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 1,255 shares of company stock worth $663,859. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

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.