Blackhawk Capital Partners LLC. Boosts Stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Blackhawk Capital Partners LLC. lifted its holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 4.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,808 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 78 shares during the period. Blackhawk Capital Partners LLC.’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $848,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 0.4% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,140,892 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $2,186,681,000 after buying an additional 17,596 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Northrop Grumman by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,003,360 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,581,644,000 after acquiring an additional 18,791 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in Northrop Grumman by 6.2% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,426,270 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,315,729,000 after acquiring an additional 141,816 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 809,445 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $427,444,000 after acquiring an additional 3,211 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Two Sigma Advisers LP raised its position in Northrop Grumman by 102.6% during the third quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 735,600 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $388,448,000 after acquiring an additional 372,500 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on NOC. Susquehanna dropped their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Wolfe Research upgraded Northrop Grumman from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Northrop Grumman from $595.00 to $574.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Barclays dropped their price target on Northrop Grumman from $550.00 to $500.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Northrop Grumman from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $544.56.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 192 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $429.08, for a total transaction of $82,383.36. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 709 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $304,217.72. This trade represents a 21.31 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders have sold a total of 291 shares of company stock valued at $129,184 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

Northrop Grumman stock opened at $449.98 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $470.38 and a 200 day moving average price of $497.29. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 12-month low of $418.60 and a 12-month high of $555.57. The stock has a market cap of $65.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.88, a PEG ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.35.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.27 by $0.12. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 10.17% and a return on equity of 26.24%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a $2.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.83%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.08%.

Northrop Grumman announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 11th that authorizes the company to buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the aerospace company to repurchase up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

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.