Unison Asset Management LLC Acquires 58 Shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Unison Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 0.7% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 8,176 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the period. Northrop Grumman makes up 1.8% of Unison Asset Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 20th biggest holding. Unison Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $3,564,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Optimum Investment Advisors lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 241.2% in the second quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors now owns 58 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Bank & Trust Co acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new position in Northrop Grumman in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, Riverview Trust Co acquired a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the first quarter valued at approximately $47,000. 83.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Northrop Grumman Trading Down 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE:NOC traded down $5.46 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $518.22. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 56,719 shares, compared to its average volume of 926,329. The firm has a market capitalization of $76.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.14, a PEG ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.32. Northrop Grumman Co. has a fifty-two week low of $414.56 and a fifty-two week high of $528.76. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $475.08 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $464.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.11.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The aerospace company reported $6.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.93 by $0.43. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 5.61% and a return on equity of 25.44%. The company had revenue of $10.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.02 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $5.34 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 25.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 18th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd will be issued a dividend of $2.06 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 3rd. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.59%. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is 57.62%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on NOC. UBS Group increased their price target on Northrop Grumman from $593.00 to $605.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Northrop Grumman from $579.00 to $592.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 9th. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered shares of Northrop Grumman from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and set a $477.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Friday, June 21st. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $470.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $467.00 to $509.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Northrop Grumman has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $523.20.

Insider Buying and Selling at Northrop Grumman

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Thomas H. Jones sold 1,390 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total transaction of $695,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 4,634 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,317,000. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, VP Thomas H. Jones sold 1,390 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.00, for a total transaction of $695,000.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 4,634 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,317,000. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Thomas H. Jones sold 1,389 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $477.56, for a total transaction of $663,330.84. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 6,755 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,225,917.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 2,813 shares of company stock valued at $1,375,877. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Profile

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.