Nuance Investments LLC Trims Stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Nuance Investments LLC lessened its holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 21.8% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 79,953 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 22,307 shares during the period. Northrop Grumman accounts for approximately 1.4% of Nuance Investments LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest holding. Nuance Investments LLC owned approximately 0.05% of Northrop Grumman worth $42,217,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Capital International Investors raised its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 5.6% in the 1st 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. Capital World Investors raised its stake in Northrop Grumman by 0.6% in the first quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 3,688,511 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,765,543,000 after purchasing an additional 23,398 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc raised its stake in Northrop Grumman by 16.0% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 1,087,913 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $474,276,000 after purchasing an additional 150,367 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in Northrop Grumman by 22.4% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 683,427 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $297,937,000 after purchasing an additional 125,262 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp grew its stake in Northrop Grumman by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 443,724 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $229,139,000 after buying an additional 5,203 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 1,156 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $532.93, for a total value of $616,067.08. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 537 shares in the company, valued at $286,183.41. This represents a 68.28 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 1,289 shares of company stock valued at $685,273. 0.22% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE NOC opened at $490.86 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $521.97 and its 200-day moving average price is $486.44. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 52-week low of $418.60 and a 52-week high of $555.57. The company has a market cap of $71.52 billion, a PE ratio of 30.41, a PEG ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The aerospace company reported $7.00 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.07 by $0.93. The business had revenue of $10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.18 billion. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 5.79% and a return on equity of 26.57%. The firm’s revenue was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $6.18 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 25.93 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently issued reports on NOC. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. StockNews.com downgraded Northrop Grumman from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $474.00 to $575.00 in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $509.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company 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.