Transcend Capital Advisors LLC Acquires 59 Shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Transcend Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 10.4% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 629 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after buying an additional 59 shares during the period. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $294,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of NOC. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Northrop Grumman in the third quarter worth about $29,000. Providence Capital Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 400.0% in the third quarter. Providence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 100 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in Northrop Grumman in the third quarter worth about $70,000. Finally, Rational Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Northrop Grumman in the third quarter worth about $72,000. Institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of NOC stock opened at $485.09 on Wednesday. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 12 month low of $414.56 and a 12 month high of $496.89. The stock has a market cap of $71.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.92, a P/E/G ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $463.92 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $465.75.

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

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 26th were given a $1.87 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 23rd. This represents a $7.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.54%. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is currently 52.31%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Northrop Grumman news, CAO Michael A. Hardesty sold 210 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $454.68, for a total value of $95,482.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,127 shares in the company, valued at $1,421,784.36. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 1,273 shares of the company’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 completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,735 shares in the company, valued at $1,231,761.95. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Michael A. Hardesty sold 210 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $454.68, for a total transaction of $95,482.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 3,127 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,421,784.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 3,149 shares of company stock worth $1,421,147 over the last three months. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Northrop Grumman from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $483.00 to $518.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $450.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. TheStreet cut shares of Northrop Grumman from a “b+” rating to a “c+” rating in a report on Thursday, January 25th. Finally, Susquehanna boosted their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $509.38.

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.