HMV Wealth Advisors LLC Invests $304,000 in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

HMV Wealth Advisors LLC purchased 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 SEC. The firm purchased 648 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $304,000.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of NOC. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV purchased a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $234,000. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 6.5% in the 3rd quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,937 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,023,000 after buying an additional 118 shares during the period. Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc boosted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 4.1% in the 3rd quarter. Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc now owns 2,585 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,365,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the period. Plato Investment Management Ltd boosted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 24.3% in the 3rd quarter. Plato Investment Management Ltd now owns 848 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $447,000 after buying an additional 166 shares during the period. Finally, Zions Bancorporation N.A. boosted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 13.9% in the 3rd quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 836 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $441,000 after buying an additional 102 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $475.65, for a total transaction of $1,783,687.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 212,852 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $101,243,053.80. The trade was a 1.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 192 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $429.08, for a total transaction of $82,383.36. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 709 shares in the company, valued at $304,217.72. The trade was a 21.31 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 4,505 shares of company stock valued at $2,126,405. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Trading Down 0.9 %

Shares of NOC opened at $486.10 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $471.93 and its 200-day moving average price is $494.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.15, a PEG ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.31. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 1-year low of $418.60 and a 1-year high of $555.57.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 earnings per share 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%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, December 11th that allows the company to buyback $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the aerospace company to buy up to 4.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors 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. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be paid a dividend of $2.06 per share. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.70%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is 29.08%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently commented on NOC. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $545.00 to $547.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Wolfe Research raised shares of Northrop Grumman from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Susquehanna cut their price target 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. Finally, Argus raised shares of Northrop Grumman to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target 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.