Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. Acquires 68 Shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. grew its stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 1.1% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 6,259 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 68 shares during the quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD.’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $2,938,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $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 stake in Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Northrop Grumman during the third quarter worth $40,000. Finally, Modus Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter valued at $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Northrop Grumman

In related news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 1,156 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $532.93, for a total transaction of $616,067.08. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 537 shares in the company, valued at approximately $286,183.41. This trade represents a 68.28 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders have sold a total of 1,255 shares of company stock valued at $662,868 in the last ninety days. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Northrop Grumman Stock Up 0.5 %

NYSE NOC opened at $468.75 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The company has a market cap of $67.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.54, a PEG ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a 50 day moving average of $477.33 and a 200-day moving average of $498.99. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 1-year low of $418.60 and a 1-year high of $555.57.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 earnings per share 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%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Wednesday, December 11th that allows the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the aerospace company to buy up to 4.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were paid a dividend of $2.06 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.76%. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is 29.08%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Truist Financial assumed coverage on shares of Northrop Grumman in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $544.00 target price on the stock. Wolfe Research raised Northrop Grumman from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company decreased 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $560.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Citigroup upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $587.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $544.31.

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.