Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp Cuts Stock Position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp cut its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 13.0% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 5,077 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 759 shares during the quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $2,382,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in NOC. Two Sigma Advisers LP boosted its position 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 during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $171,580,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $94,370,000. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in Northrop Grumman by 6.2% in the 3rd 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Wedge Capital Management L L P NC bought a new stake in Northrop Grumman during the 4th quarter valued at $66,171,000. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Northrop Grumman Stock Up 2.5 %

NOC stock opened at $487.22 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $469.88 and a 200 day moving average of $495.11. The firm has a market cap of $70.53 billion, a PE ratio of 17.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.31. Northrop Grumman Co. has a twelve month low of $418.60 and a twelve month high of $555.57. 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 (NYSE:NOC) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.27 by $0.12. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 10.17% and a return on equity of 26.24%. On average, research analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase program 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 programs are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be paid a dividend of $2.06 per share. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.69%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.08%.

Insider Activity

In other Northrop Grumman news, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $475.65, for a total value of $1,783,687.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 212,852 shares in the company, valued at approximately $101,243,053.80. This trade represents a 1.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 464 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $460.75, for a total transaction of $213,788.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 245 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $112,883.75. The trade was a 65.44 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 4,505 shares of company stock valued at $2,126,405 in the last 90 days. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com cut Northrop Grumman from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Wolfe Research raised shares of Northrop Grumman from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $545.00 to $547.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday. Citigroup increased their target price 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. Finally, Susquehanna reduced their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $542.88.

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.