Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) Stake Raised by Bleakley Financial Group LLC

Bleakley Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 1.5% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 8,342 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 122 shares during the quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $3,915,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 0.4% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,140,892 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $2,186,681,000 after buying an additional 17,596 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 0.6% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,003,360 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,581,644,000 after buying an additional 18,791 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 6.2% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,426,270 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,315,729,000 after buying an additional 141,816 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 0.4% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 809,445 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $427,444,000 after purchasing an additional 3,211 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Two Sigma Advisers LP raised its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 102.6% during the third quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 735,600 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $388,448,000 after purchasing an additional 372,500 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Trading Down 1.3 %

NYSE NOC opened at $466.29 on Friday. Northrop Grumman Co. has a twelve month low of $418.60 and a twelve month high of $555.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.01. The stock has a market cap of $67.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.45, a PEG ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 0.35. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $477.78 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $499.22.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.27 by $0.12. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 10.17% and a return on equity of 26.24%. Equities analysts anticipate that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.04 EPS for the current year.

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

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced 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. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.77%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 2nd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.08%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Northrop Grumman

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 1,156 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 537 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $286,183.41. This trade represents a 68.28 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders sold 1,255 shares of company stock valued at $662,868 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on NOC shares. Barclays dropped their target price on Northrop Grumman from $550.00 to $500.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. Wolfe Research raised Northrop Grumman from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Monday. Truist Financial assumed coverage on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $544.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $544.31.

Northrop Grumman 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.