NEOS Investment Management LLC Grows Position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

NEOS Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 26.2% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 5,965 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,239 shares during the quarter. NEOS Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $2,799,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in NOC. Townsquare Capital LLC increased its stake in Northrop Grumman by 75.6% in the 3rd quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 5,390 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $2,847,000 after buying an additional 2,320 shares during the last quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA grew its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 7.8% in the third quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 17,386 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $9,181,000 after acquiring an additional 1,253 shares in the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund purchased a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the third quarter valued at approximately $1,056,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 15.3% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 572,451 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $302,294,000 after acquiring an additional 75,921 shares during the period. Finally, Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its position in Northrop Grumman by 7.7% in the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 5,567 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $2,940,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Stock Down 0.4 %

NOC stock opened at $511.86 on Friday. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 1-year low of $418.60 and a 1-year high of $555.57. The stock has a market cap of $74.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.31. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The company’s 50 day moving average is $478.20 and its 200 day moving average is $493.03.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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%. Sell-side analysts predict that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a dividend of $2.06 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.61%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.08%.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on NOC. Barclays lowered their target price on Northrop Grumman from $550.00 to $500.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $545.00 to $547.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Argus upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $500.00 to $575.00 in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Citigroup upped their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $545.06.

Insider Activity at Northrop Grumman

In related news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 464 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $460.75, for a total value of $213,788.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 245 shares in the company, valued at $112,883.75. This trade represents a 65.44 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $475.65, for a total transaction of $1,783,687.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 212,852 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $101,243,053.80. The trade was a 1.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 4,505 shares of company stock valued at $2,126,405. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

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.