MetLife Investment Management LLC Reduces Stock Position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

MetLife Investment Management LLC lowered its stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 3.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 36,581 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 1,229 shares during the quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $16,674,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Archer Investment Corp boosted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 325.0% in the second quarter. Archer Investment Corp now owns 68 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. State of Wyoming raised its position in Northrop Grumman by 76.5% in the fourth 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. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV raised its position in Northrop Grumman by 169.0% in the second quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 78 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares during the period. Sageworth Trust Co raised its position in Northrop Grumman by 1,440.0% in the first quarter. Sageworth Trust Co now owns 77 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 72 shares during the period. Finally, Key Financial Inc raised its position in Northrop Grumman by 60.0% in the second quarter. Key Financial Inc now owns 80 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.40% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NOC has been the topic of several recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $485.00 to $435.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, September 18th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Wednesday, September 27th. They set a “buy” rating and a $502.00 price objective on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $500.00 price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Thursday, August 3rd. Bank of America decreased their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $655.00 to $615.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 28th. Finally, UBS Group began coverage on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Tuesday, October 10th. They set a “buy” rating and a $555.00 price objective on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Northrop Grumman has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $500.20.

Northrop Grumman Trading Up 0.8 %

NYSE NOC opened at $469.50 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The firm has a market cap of $70.80 billion, a PE ratio of 15.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 8.43 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $457.79 and a 200 day moving average price of $448.53. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 52 week low of $414.56 and a 52 week high of $549.87.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 26th. The aerospace company reported $6.18 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.81 by $0.37. The company had revenue of $9.78 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.58 billion. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 12.07% and a return on equity of 24.24%. Northrop Grumman’s revenue was up 9.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $5.89 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 22.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 27th will be issued a $1.87 dividend. This represents a $7.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 24th. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 24.54%.

About Northrop Grumman

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.