Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) Downgraded to “Buy” Rating by StockNews.com

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) was downgraded by StockNews.com from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued on Saturday.

Several other brokerages have also recently commented on NOC. UBS Group raised their price target 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. Barclays decreased their target price on Northrop Grumman from $550.00 to $500.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Susquehanna cut their price target on Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. TD Cowen upgraded Northrop Grumman to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $521.00 to $587.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $551.40.

Northrop Grumman Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE NOC opened at $458.37 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $484.74 and a 200-day simple moving average of $493.07. Northrop Grumman has a twelve month low of $418.60 and a twelve 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 has a market capitalization of $66.78 billion, a PE ratio of 28.40, a PEG ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.35.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The aerospace company reported $7.00 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 period in the previous year, the company posted $6.18 EPS. Northrop Grumman’s revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman will post 25.93 earnings per share for the current year.

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

Insider Activity at Northrop Grumman

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 1,156 shares of the business’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 completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 537 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders sold a total of 1,255 shares of company stock valued at $663,859 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Northrop Grumman

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Ascent Group LLC boosted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 0.5% during the 2nd quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 4,337 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,891,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. Cornell Pochily Investment Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Northrop Grumman by 0.9% in the third quarter. Cornell Pochily Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 2,141 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,131,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. Asset Dedication LLC raised its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 1.0% in the third quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 2,025 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,069,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 1.4% during the third quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,478 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $780,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the period. Finally, PBMares Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Northrop Grumman by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. PBMares Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,421 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $2,335,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.