National Pension Service Sells 4,227 Shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

National Pension Service lessened its stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 1.8% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 230,817 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 4,227 shares during the period. National Pension Service owned 0.15% of Northrop Grumman worth $106,402,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. IHT Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 1.6% during the first quarter. IHT Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,371 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $613,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares during the period. Prestige Wealth Management Group LLC raised its position in Northrop Grumman by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Prestige Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 810 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $442,000 after purchasing an additional 23 shares in the last quarter. Alaethes Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Alaethes Wealth LLC now owns 2,446 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,334,000 after buying an additional 23 shares during the period. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH grew its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 2.8% during the 1st quarter. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH now owns 855 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $395,000 after buying an additional 23 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Octavia Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 3.7% during the first quarter. Octavia Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 652 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $301,000 after buying an additional 23 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 82.40% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Stock Up 0.8 %

Northrop Grumman stock traded up $3.58 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $433.64. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 102,732 shares, compared to its average volume of 856,667. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.20 and a quick ratio of 1.09. The stock has a market capitalization of $65.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.43, a PEG ratio of 4.69 and a beta of 0.51. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $444.88 and its 200-day simple moving average is $452.66. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 52-week low of $421.73 and a 52-week high of $556.27.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 27th. The aerospace company reported $5.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.31 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $9.58 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.32 billion. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 12.27% and a return on equity of 24.90%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 22.63 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 28th will be paid a dividend of $1.87 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 25th. This represents a $7.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.72%. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is currently 24.78%.

Insider Activity

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Mark A. Caylor sold 1,670 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $437.87, for a total transaction of $731,242.90. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 14,570 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,379,765.90. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on NOC. StockNews.com cut shares of Northrop Grumman from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, August 25th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $448.00 to $485.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 31st. Bank of America reduced their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $655.00 to $615.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 28th. Barclays cut Northrop Grumman from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $580.00 to $450.00 in a research report on Thursday, May 11th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their price target on Northrop Grumman from $581.00 to $569.00 in a research report on Friday, June 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $509.75.

Northrop Grumman Company Profile

Northrop Grumman Corporation operates as an aerospace and defense company worldwide. The company's Aeronautics Systems segment designs, develops, manufactures, integrates, and sustains aircraft systems in the United States and internationally. 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.