Canada Pension Plan Investment Board Raises Holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board increased its holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 6.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 64,631 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,100 shares during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $29,459,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NOC. Cibc World Market Inc. grew its position in Northrop Grumman by 59.4% in the first quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 7,390 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $3,305,000 after acquiring an additional 2,753 shares during the period. Vontobel Holding Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 41.4% during the first quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 3,445 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,541,000 after buying an additional 1,008 shares during the period. Prudential PLC purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the first quarter worth $1,514,000. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 21.6% during the first quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,390 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $622,000 after buying an additional 247 shares during the period. Finally, Zions Bancorporation N.A. boosted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 11.0% during the first quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 1,890 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $845,000 after buying an additional 187 shares during the period. 82.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Northrop Grumman Stock Up 0.5 %

Northrop Grumman stock opened at $466.83 on Wednesday. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 1-year low of $414.56 and a 1-year high of $549.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 1.28 and a quick ratio of 1.14. The stock has a market cap of $70.39 billion, a PE ratio of 15.32, a P/E/G ratio of 8.45 and a beta of 0.42. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $454.66 and its two-hundred day moving average is $448.10.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 26th. The aerospace company reported $6.18 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.81 by $0.37. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 24.24% and a net margin of 12.07%. The company had revenue of $9.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.58 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $5.89 earnings per share. Northrop Grumman’s quarterly revenue was up 9.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 22.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Northrop Grumman

In other news, VP Roshan S. Roeder sold 1,007 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $465.00, for a total transaction of $468,255.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 913 shares in the company, valued at $424,545. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, VP Roshan S. Roeder sold 1,007 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $465.00, for a total transaction of $468,255.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 913 shares in the company, valued at $424,545. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Mark A. Caylor sold 1,670 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $472.62, for a total value of $789,275.40. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 12,900 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,096,798. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.26% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NOC has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Bank of America lowered their price target on Northrop Grumman from $655.00 to $615.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 28th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on Northrop Grumman in a research report on Wednesday, September 27th. They set a “buy” rating and a $502.00 price target for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Northrop Grumman from $430.00 to $435.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 31st. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Northrop Grumman from $485.00 to $435.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, September 18th. Finally, UBS Group started coverage on Northrop Grumman in a report on Tuesday, October 10th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $555.00 target price for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $500.20.

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.