Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) Shares Sold by Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co

Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co lowered its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 7.1% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 619 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 47 shares during the quarter. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $290,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in Northrop Grumman by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,140,892 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $2,186,681,000 after acquiring an additional 17,596 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 0.6% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,003,360 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,581,644,000 after acquiring an additional 18,791 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 6.2% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,426,270 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,315,729,000 after acquiring an additional 141,816 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 0.4% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 809,445 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $427,444,000 after purchasing an additional 3,211 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Two Sigma Advisers LP lifted its position in Northrop Grumman by 102.6% in the third quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 735,600 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $388,448,000 after purchasing an additional 372,500 shares during the period. 83.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 192 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $429.08, for a total transaction of $82,383.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 709 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $304,217.72. This represents a 21.31 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 291 shares of company stock worth $129,184. 0.22% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE NOC opened at $454.80 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 0.91. The company has a market cap of $65.84 billion, a PE ratio of 16.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $469.74 and a 200-day simple moving average of $496.76. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 12 month low of $418.60 and a 12 month high of $555.57.

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

Northrop Grumman announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 11th that authorizes the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the aerospace company to repurchase up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be paid a $2.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.81%. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is currently 29.08%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NOC has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Barclays reduced their price target on Northrop Grumman from $550.00 to $500.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Truist Financial assumed coverage on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $544.00 price target on the stock. Wolfe Research raised shares of Northrop Grumman from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Citigroup lifted their price target 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, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Northrop Grumman from $574.00 to $545.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price 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.