Richard C. Young & CO. LTD. Takes Position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Richard C. Young & CO. LTD. bought a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 13,973 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,557,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Stoneridge Investment Partners LLC acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter valued at $2,105,000. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 21.9% in the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 12,196 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $5,723,000 after purchasing an additional 2,193 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB grew its stake in Northrop Grumman by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 2,619 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,229,000 after buying an additional 53 shares during the last quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Northrop Grumman by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,520 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $3,998,000 after buying an additional 183 shares during the period. Finally, Unison Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Unison Asset Management LLC now owns 8,375 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $3,930,000 after buying an additional 212 shares during the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Northrop Grumman Trading Up 0.5 %

NOC opened at $468.75 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 52-week low of $418.60 and a 52-week high of $555.57. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $476.91 and its 200-day moving average is $499.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $67.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.54, a P/E/G ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.35.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. Analysts expect that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 27.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The firm 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.76%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 2nd. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is currently 29.08%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 1,156 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The shares were 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 directly owns 537 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $286,183.41. This represents a 68.28 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders sold 1,255 shares of company stock valued at $662,868 over the last 90 days. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on NOC shares. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $595.00 to $574.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $560.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Citigroup upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $587.00 target price for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $579.00 to $558.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Northrop Grumman from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $544.31.

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.