Sentry Investment Management LLC Reduces Holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Sentry Investment Management LLC reduced its position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 6.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 636 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 45 shares during the quarter. Sentry Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $336,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Optimum Investment Advisors increased 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 valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Bank & Trust Co purchased a new position in Northrop Grumman during the second quarter worth about $28,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in Northrop Grumman by 245.5% during the second quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 76 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the period. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman in the 3rd quarter valued at about $40,000. Finally, Strategic Financial Concepts LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $47,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

Shares of NYSE NOC opened at $507.44 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $523.43 and its 200-day simple moving average is $483.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $73.93 billion, a PE ratio of 31.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 0.35. Northrop Grumman Co. has a fifty-two week low of $418.60 and a fifty-two week high of $555.57.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The aerospace company reported $7.00 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.07 by $0.93. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 5.79% and a return on equity of 26.57%. The company had revenue of $10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.18 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $6.18 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 25.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 18th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd were paid a $2.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 3rd. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.62%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 51.05%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NOC has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded Northrop Grumman from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Northrop Grumman from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the company from $474.00 to $575.00 in a research note on Monday, July 29th. TD Cowen raised Northrop Grumman to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $540.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Susquehanna lifted their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $560.00 to $625.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Northrop Grumman presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $550.56.

Northrop Grumman Company 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.