PFG Investments LLC Makes New $574,000 Investment in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

PFG Investments LLC bought a new position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 1,199 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $574,000.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 960.0% in the fourth quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 53 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the period. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new position in Northrop Grumman during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the third quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, McIlrath & Eck LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 247.6% during the fourth quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 73 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

Shares of NYSE NOC traded up $5.77 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $486.22. 714,410 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,003,827. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $463.30 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $465.78. Northrop Grumman Co. has a twelve month low of $414.56 and a twelve month high of $496.89. The company has a market cap of $71.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.00, a PEG ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.13.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The aerospace company reported $6.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.83 by $0.49. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 5.38% and a return on equity of 24.09%. The business had revenue of $10.13 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.77 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $5.50 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 24.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 26th were paid a dividend of $1.87 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 23rd. This represents a $7.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.54%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 52.31%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on NOC shares. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $475.00 to $505.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $450.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday. TheStreet downgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from a “b+” rating to a “c+” rating in a report on Thursday, January 25th. Susquehanna lifted their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Northrop Grumman from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $503.00.

Insider Activity at Northrop Grumman

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 711 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $453.22, for a total transaction of $322,239.42. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 2,024 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $917,317.28. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 1,273 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $450.37, for a total transaction of $573,321.01. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 2,735 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,231,761.95. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 711 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $453.22, for a total transaction of $322,239.42. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,024 shares in the company, valued at $917,317.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 3,149 shares of company stock valued at $1,421,147 over the last quarter. 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.