Unison Asset Management LLC Has $3.93 Million Position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Unison Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 2.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,375 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 212 shares during the period. Northrop Grumman makes up 1.9% of Unison Asset Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest position. Unison Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $3,930,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cornell Pochily Investment Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Cornell Pochily Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 2,141 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,131,000 after buying an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Asset Dedication LLC raised its stake in Northrop Grumman by 1.0% during the third quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 2,025 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,069,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 1.4% during the third quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,478 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $780,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the period. PBMares Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. PBMares Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,421 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $2,335,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hudson Valley Investment Advisors Inc. ADV grew its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Hudson Valley Investment Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 2,262 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,194,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on NOC. Citigroup upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $587.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. 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 report on Monday, January 6th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective 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. StockNews.com lowered Northrop Grumman from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Susquehanna reduced their price target 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. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $544.31.

Northrop Grumman Trading Up 0.5 %

NYSE:NOC opened at $468.75 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 1-year low of $418.60 and a 1-year high of $555.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $67.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.54, a PEG ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.35. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $477.33 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $498.99.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.27 by $0.12. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 10.17% and a return on equity of 26.24%. On average, equities analysts expect that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 27.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were issued a dividend of $2.06 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.76%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is presently 29.08%.

Northrop Grumman declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, December 11th that authorizes the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the aerospace company to purchase up to 4.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Northrop Grumman

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 1,156 shares of Northrop Grumman 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 owns 537 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $286,183.41. The trade was a 68.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 1,255 shares of company stock valued at $662,868. Company insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

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.