Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) Stake Increased by Twin Capital Management Inc.

Twin Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 7.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,334 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the period. Twin Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $624,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. London Co. of Virginia acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the third quarter worth $165,786,000. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 74.7% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,174,556 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $517,028,000 after acquiring an additional 502,060 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. increased its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 19.7% in the fourth quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 16,515 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $7,731,000 after acquiring an additional 2,723 shares during the last quarter. Phraction Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the third quarter worth $677,000. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 2,801.7% in the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 330,499 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $154,720,000 after acquiring an additional 319,109 shares during the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 1,273 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $450.37, for a total transaction of $573,321.01. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 2,735 shares in the company, valued at $1,231,761.95. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, CAO Michael A. Hardesty sold 210 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $454.68, for a total value of $95,482.80. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,127 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,421,784.36. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 1,273 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $450.37, for a total value of $573,321.01. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 2,735 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,231,761.95. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 3,149 shares of company stock worth $1,421,147. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Trading Up 2.2 %

Shares of NOC opened at $462.58 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $459.71 and its 200 day moving average price is $464.26. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 12-month low of $414.56 and a 12-month high of $496.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $68.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.32, a P/E/G ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 0.35.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 25th. The aerospace company reported $6.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.80 by $0.47. The business had revenue of $10.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.43 billion. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 23.07% and a net margin of 5.23%. Northrop Grumman’s quarterly revenue was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $7.50 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 24.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 26th were issued a dividend of $1.87 per share. This represents a $7.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.62%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 23rd. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is 55.49%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on NOC shares. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, January 29th. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $505.00 to $475.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 26th. TheStreet downgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from a “b+” rating to a “c+” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $450.00 target price (down from $515.00) on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Finally, Susquehanna lowered their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $560.00 to $540.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Northrop Grumman presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $494.33.

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.