Simmons Bank Grows Stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Simmons Bank grew its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 5.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,176 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after buying an additional 61 shares during the period. Simmons Bank’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $621,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in NOC. Capital International Investors boosted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 5.6% in the first quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 11,747,646 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $5,623,128,000 after acquiring an additional 621,636 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 1,915.9% during the 2nd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 438,521 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $191,173,000 after purchasing an additional 416,768 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 4.8% during the first quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,634,043 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $2,218,132,000 after buying an additional 211,459 shares during the period. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC bought a new position in Northrop Grumman in the second quarter worth about $90,177,000. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the second quarter worth about $74,206,000. Institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Northrop Grumman

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 1,156 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $532.93, for a total value of $616,067.08. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 537 shares in the company, valued at approximately $286,183.41. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 1,289 shares of company stock worth $685,273. 0.22% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Northrop Grumman Trading Down 2.1 %

NYSE:NOC opened at $520.39 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $75.82 billion, a PE ratio of 32.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $524.14 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $485.78. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 12 month low of $418.60 and a 12 month high of $555.57.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The aerospace company reported $7.00 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.07 by $0.93. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 26.57% and a net margin of 5.79%. The company had revenue of $10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.18 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $6.18 earnings per share. Northrop Grumman’s revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 25.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 18th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 3rd were issued a $2.06 dividend. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.58%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 3rd. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is 51.05%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. Citigroup upped their target price on Northrop Grumman from $521.00 to $587.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $614.00 to $643.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Susquehanna raised their price target on Northrop Grumman from $560.00 to $625.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $509.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target 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.