Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) Shares Sold by US Bancorp DE

US Bancorp DE cut its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 2.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 102,684 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 2,129 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $48,188,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in NOC. SVB Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter worth about $1,730,000. Motco boosted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Motco now owns 11,862 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $5,567,000 after buying an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. First American Bank increased its stake in Northrop Grumman by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. First American Bank now owns 16,758 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $7,864,000 after buying an additional 162 shares in the last quarter. VELA Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. VELA Investment Management LLC now owns 6,403 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $3,005,000 after acquiring an additional 68 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Schulhoff & Co. Inc. lifted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Schulhoff & Co. Inc. now owns 3,923 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,841,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares in the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Northrop Grumman Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of Northrop Grumman stock opened at $461.74 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $469.44 and a 200 day moving average of $496.18. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $66.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.29, a PEG ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.35. Northrop Grumman Co. has a fifty-two week low of $418.60 and a fifty-two week high of $555.57.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.27 by $0.12. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 26.24% and a net margin of 10.17%. As a group, research analysts predict that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Wednesday, December 11th that authorizes the company to buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the aerospace company to purchase up to 4.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a $2.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.78%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is presently 29.08%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 192 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $429.08, for a total value of $82,383.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 709 shares in the company, valued at approximately $304,217.72. This trade represents a 21.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders sold a total of 291 shares of company stock worth $129,184 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently commented on NOC shares. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Northrop Grumman from $574.00 to $545.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Wolfe Research raised shares of Northrop Grumman from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. StockNews.com cut shares of Northrop Grumman from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Susquehanna cut their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $542.75.

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.