Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) Price Target Cut to $574.00 by Analysts at Wells Fargo & Company

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) had its target price decreased by investment analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $595.00 to $574.00 in a report released on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “overweight” rating on the aerospace company’s stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s price objective indicates a potential upside of 18.59% from the stock’s current price.

NOC has been the subject of a number of other research reports. UBS Group boosted their price target on Northrop Grumman from $614.00 to $643.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target 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. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. StockNews.com raised shares of Northrop Grumman from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, January 19th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $549.63.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

Shares of NOC traded up $0.63 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $484.00. The stock had a trading volume of 108,008 shares, compared to its average volume of 834,798. Northrop Grumman has a one year low of $418.60 and a one year high of $555.57. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $478.40 and a 200-day simple moving average of $497.53. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00. The firm has a market cap of $70.52 billion, a PE ratio of 29.97, a P/E/G ratio of 0.91 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 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 will post 25.96 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Wednesday, December 11th that allows the company to buyback $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the aerospace company to repurchase up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Northrop Grumman

In other news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 1,156 shares of the 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 transaction, the vice president now owns 537 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $286,183.41. This represents a 68.28 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders sold a total of 1,255 shares of company stock valued at $663,859 in the last quarter. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Northrop Grumman

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 3rd quarter worth $31,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman during the third quarter worth $36,000. Albion Financial Group UT bought a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the third quarter valued at about $40,000. Finally, Modus Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% 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.