Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) Price Target Increased to $560.00 by Analysts at Susquehanna

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) had its price objective hoisted by Susquehanna from $540.00 to $560.00 in a report released on Friday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a positive rating on the aerospace company’s stock.

A number of other analysts also recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com downgraded Northrop Grumman from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report on Monday, January 29th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a sector perform rating and issued a $450.00 target price (down from $515.00) on shares of Northrop Grumman in a report on Friday, January 26th. TheStreet cut Northrop Grumman from a b+ rating to a c+ rating in a report on Thursday, January 25th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $475.00 to $505.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Alembic Global Advisors raised shares of Northrop Grumman from a neutral rating to an overweight rating and set a $532.00 price target for the company in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $503.00.

Northrop Grumman Trading Up 1.2 %

NYSE NOC opened at $486.22 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $71.96 billion, a PE ratio of 34.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.35. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $463.30 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $465.78. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. Northrop Grumman has a 12 month low of $414.56 and a 12 month high of $496.89.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The aerospace company reported $6.32 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.83 by $0.49. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 24.09% and a net margin of 5.38%. The company had revenue of $10.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.77 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $5.50 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Northrop Grumman will post 24.7 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 26th were issued a dividend of $1.87 per share. This represents a $7.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.54%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 23rd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 52.31%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 1,273 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $450.37, for a total value of $573,321.01. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 2,735 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,231,761.95. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 711 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $453.22, for a total value of $322,239.42. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,024 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $917,317.28. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 1,273 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $450.37, for a total value of $573,321.01. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 2,735 shares in the company, valued at $1,231,761.95. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 3,149 shares of company stock worth $1,421,147 over the last quarter. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NOC. Wesbanco Bank Inc. boosted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 1.2% in the third quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 1,782 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $784,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares during the period. Bogart Wealth LLC lifted its position in Northrop Grumman by 14.1% in the 1st quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 170 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $81,000 after buying an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. raised its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 4.4% during the fourth quarter. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. now owns 524 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $245,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. Secure Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Secure Asset Management LLC now owns 844 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $395,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Simon Quick Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 4.0% in the 3rd quarter. Simon Quick Advisors LLC now owns 604 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $266,000 after purchasing an additional 23 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

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.