Fortune Financial Advisors LLC Raises Holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Fortune Financial Advisors LLC raised its position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 2.4% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 4,734 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 109 shares during the period. Northrop Grumman accounts for about 2.0% of Fortune Financial Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest position. Fortune Financial Advisors LLC’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $2,222,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Trinity Street Asset Management LLP lifted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Trinity Street Asset Management LLP now owns 48,367 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $22,698,000 after purchasing an additional 1,786 shares in the last quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the third quarter valued at approximately $604,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its holdings 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 period. AIA Group Ltd boosted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 20.0% in the 3rd quarter. AIA Group Ltd now owns 7,458 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $3,938,000 after purchasing an additional 1,242 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Parsons Capital Management Inc. RI grew its position in Northrop Grumman by 1,316.9% in the fourth quarter. Parsons Capital Management Inc. RI now owns 16,139 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $7,574,000 after acquiring an additional 15,000 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Trading Up 0.4 %

NYSE:NOC opened at $483.70 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $478.66 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $497.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.09. The stock has a market capitalization of $70.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.97, a PEG ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 0.35. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 1 year low of $418.60 and a 1 year high of $555.57.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.27 by $0.12. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 26.57% and a net margin of 5.79%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 25.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were issued a $2.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.70%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 51.05%.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on NOC shares. Citigroup upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $587.00 price target for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $560.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. StockNews.com upgraded Northrop Grumman from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, January 19th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $614.00 to $643.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Susquehanna cut their price target on Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $550.94.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 1,156 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $532.93, for a total value of $616,067.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 537 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $286,183.41. The trade was a 68.28 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders have sold 1,255 shares of company stock worth $663,859 over the last three months. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.