Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) Shares Sold by Fiduciary Trust Co

Fiduciary Trust Co reduced its stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 14,911 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 158 shares during the period. Fiduciary Trust Co’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $7,874,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NOC. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund acquired a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the third quarter valued at approximately $1,056,000. Glenmede Trust Co. NA grew its position in Northrop Grumman by 7.8% in the third quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 17,386 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $9,181,000 after acquiring an additional 1,253 shares in the last quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 75.6% during the third quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 5,390 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $2,847,000 after purchasing an additional 2,320 shares in the last quarter. Finally, J. Stern & Co. LLP purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the third quarter valued at $391,000. 83.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 1,156 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $532.93, for a total value of $616,067.08. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 537 shares in the company, valued at $286,183.41. This trade represents a 68.28 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 1,255 shares of company stock valued at $667,727. Insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE NOC opened at $489.08 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $71.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 0.35. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 12-month low of $418.60 and a 12-month high of $555.57. 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 stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $517.90 and its 200 day simple moving average is $487.15.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The aerospace company reported $7.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.07 by $0.93. The business had revenue of $10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.18 billion. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 26.57% and a net margin of 5.79%. The business’s revenue was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $6.18 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 25.93 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd will be issued a $2.06 dividend. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.68%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 51.05%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. Susquehanna boosted their price target on Northrop Grumman from $560.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Citigroup raised their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $521.00 to $587.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $540.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Alembic Global Advisors downgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $560.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Northrop Grumman presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $550.56.

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.