Advisors Asset Management Inc. Grows Position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Advisors Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 14.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,581 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after buying an additional 1,061 shares during the quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $4,027,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of NOC. Two Sigma Advisers LP boosted 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 valued at $388,448,000 after acquiring an additional 372,500 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 4th quarter valued at about $171,580,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 4th quarter valued at about $94,370,000. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 6.2% during 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 last quarter. Finally, Wedge Capital Management L L P NC acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 4th quarter valued at about $66,171,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NOC has been the topic of several recent research reports. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $579.00 to $558.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Truist Financial initiated coverage on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $544.00 price target on the stock. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Susquehanna decreased 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. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $545.00 to $547.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Northrop Grumman presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $542.88.

Insider Buying and Selling at Northrop Grumman

In other Northrop Grumman news, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $475.65, for a total value of $1,783,687.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 212,852 shares in the company, valued at $101,243,053.80. This represents a 1.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 192 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $429.08, for a total transaction of $82,383.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 709 shares in the company, valued at $304,217.72. This represents a 21.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 4,505 shares of company stock worth $2,126,405 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE:NOC opened at $488.98 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $474.50 and its two-hundred day moving average is $493.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 0.91. 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 $70.78 billion, a PE ratio of 17.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.31.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 earnings per share 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%. Analysts predict that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a $2.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.69%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.08%.

Northrop Grumman declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, December 11th that authorizes the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the aerospace company to repurchase up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

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.