1,111 Shares in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) Bought by Snider Financial Group

Snider Financial Group acquired a new stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 1,111 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $521,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,140,892 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $2,186,681,000 after buying an additional 17,596 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 0.6% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,003,360 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,581,644,000 after purchasing an additional 18,791 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 141,816 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 832,463 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $390,667,000 after buying an additional 23,018 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Two Sigma Advisers LP lifted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 102.6% during the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 735,600 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $388,448,000 after buying an additional 372,500 shares during the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Northrop Grumman Trading Down 1.9 %

Shares of Northrop Grumman stock opened at $464.34 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.01. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 52 week low of $418.60 and a 52 week high of $555.57. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $469.43 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $495.61. The stock has a market capitalization of $67.22 billion, a PE ratio of 16.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.35.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman declared that its board has authorized a share buyback 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 shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a dividend of $2.06 per share. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.77%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is 29.08%.

Insider Activity at Northrop Grumman

In other news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 464 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $460.75, for a total transaction of $213,788.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 245 shares in the company, valued at $112,883.75. The trade was a 65.44 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Over the last three months, insiders sold 755 shares of company stock valued at $342,972. 0.22% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NOC has been the subject of a number of research reports. StockNews.com cut shares of Northrop Grumman from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $574.00 to $545.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Wolfe Research raised Northrop Grumman from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Citigroup increased their price target on Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Truist Financial initiated coverage on Northrop Grumman in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $544.00 target price on the stock. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Northrop Grumman presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $542.75.

Northrop Grumman 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.