Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) Shares Sold by Ameriprise Financial Inc.

Ameriprise Financial Inc. reduced its position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 0.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,110,174 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 12,354 shares during the quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. owned about 1.39% of Northrop Grumman worth $974,169,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. purchased a new position in Northrop Grumman during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. State of Wyoming lifted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 76.5% in the 4th quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 60 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 26 shares during the period. Sageworth Trust Co boosted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 1,440.0% in the first quarter. Sageworth Trust Co now owns 77 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AXS Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter worth about $53,000. 82.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Northrop Grumman

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Mark A. Caylor sold 1,670 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $437.87, for a total transaction of $731,242.90. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 14,570 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,379,765.90. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NOC has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $500.00 price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Thursday, August 3rd. StockNews.com raised Northrop Grumman from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 5th. Citigroup reduced their target price on Northrop Grumman from $502.00 to $485.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 28th. Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $655.00 to $615.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 28th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $581.00 to $569.00 in a research note on Friday, June 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $506.40.

Northrop Grumman Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of Northrop Grumman stock opened at $424.08 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $440.07 and a 200-day simple moving average of $449.83. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 52-week low of $416.71 and a 52-week high of $556.27. The firm has a market cap of $64.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.05, a P/E/G ratio of 4.69 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.20 and a quick ratio of 1.09.

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

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 28th will be given a $1.87 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 25th. This represents a $7.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.76%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is 24.78%.

Northrop Grumman 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.