Advisory Services Network LLC Buys 887 Shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Advisory Services Network LLC raised its stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 32.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,621 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after acquiring an additional 887 shares during the period. Advisory Services Network LLC’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $1,699,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd bought a new position in Northrop Grumman during the 3rd quarter valued at about $604,000. TD Private Client Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 3.8% during the third quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 883 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $466,000 after buying an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp raised its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 5.4% in the third quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 19,726 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $10,417,000 after acquiring an additional 1,002 shares during the last quarter. Tudor Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,130,000. Finally, Anchor Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 21.5% in the 3rd quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 1,504 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $794,000 after acquiring an additional 266 shares in the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

NOC stock opened at $534.14 on Friday. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 1-year low of $418.60 and a 1-year high of $555.57. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $481.83 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $491.66. The firm has a market cap of $76.99 billion, a PE ratio of 18.85, a P/E/G ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.20. 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 (NYSE:NOC) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a dividend of $2.06 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.54%. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is 29.08%.

Insider Activity at Northrop Grumman

In other Northrop Grumman news, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $475.65, for a total value 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. This trade represents a 1.73 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 192 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $429.08, for a total value of $82,383.36. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 4,505 shares of company stock valued at $2,127,182. 0.22% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Argus upgraded Northrop Grumman to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Susquehanna dropped their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $579.00 to $558.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Truist Financial assumed coverage on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $544.00 price target for the company. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $543.65.

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.