Fox Run Management L.L.C. Has $371,000 Stock Holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Fox Run Management L.L.C. reduced its holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 59.7% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 790 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 1,170 shares during the quarter. Fox Run Management L.L.C.’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $371,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NOC. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 121.2% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 460 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $243,000 after acquiring an additional 252 shares in the last quarter. Summit Trail Advisors LLC lifted its position in Northrop Grumman by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. Summit Trail Advisors LLC now owns 927 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $490,000 after buying an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 4.4% during the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 231,736 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $122,076,000 after purchasing an additional 9,723 shares in the last quarter. Avestar Capital LLC boosted its position in Northrop Grumman by 13.0% in the 3rd quarter. Avestar Capital LLC now owns 618 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $326,000 after buying an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Townsquare Capital LLC boosted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 75.6% in the third quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 5,390 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $2,847,000 after acquiring an additional 2,320 shares during the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Northrop Grumman

In related news, 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 value of $213,788.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 245 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $112,883.75. The trade was a 65.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 212,852 shares in the company, valued at $101,243,053.80. This trade represents a 1.73 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 4,505 shares of company stock valued at $2,126,405. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

NYSE NOC opened at $506.26 on Thursday. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 12-month low of $418.60 and a 12-month high of $555.57. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $476.94 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $492.97. The company has a market capitalization of $73.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.86, a P/E/G ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.31. 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 quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 EPS 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%. Analysts anticipate that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current year.

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

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a dividend of $2.06 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.63%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.08%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NOC has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. StockNews.com cut shares of Northrop Grumman from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Citigroup raised their target price 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. Barclays cut their price target on Northrop Grumman from $550.00 to $500.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $579.00 to $558.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Susquehanna decreased their price target on Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $542.88.

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.