Cullinan Associates Inc. reduced its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC – Free Report) by 10.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,550 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 631 shares during the quarter. Cullinan Associates Inc.’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $2,605,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Czech National Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 5.6% in the 3rd quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 28,004 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $14,788,000 after purchasing an additional 1,495 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 24.1% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,789 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,473,000 after purchasing an additional 541 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co increased its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 2.8% in the third quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 2,016 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,065,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. Everpar Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the third quarter valued at $223,000. Finally, Lakeridge Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Northrop Grumman during the third quarter valued at approximately $227,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company’s stock.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Susquehanna reduced their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. StockNews.com downgraded Northrop Grumman from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Monday. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $540.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of 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. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $544.31.
Insiders Place Their Bets
In related news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 1,156 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $532.93, for a total transaction of $616,067.08. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 537 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $286,183.41. The trade was a 68.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders have sold 1,222 shares of company stock valued at $647,025 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.
Northrop Grumman Price Performance
Shares of NYSE:NOC opened at $487.87 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 0.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 0.35. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $478.20 and its 200-day simple moving average is $498.76. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 12 month low of $418.60 and a 12 month high of $555.57.
Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.27 by $0.12. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 26.24% and a net margin of 10.17%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement
The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd were paid a dividend of $2.06 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.69%. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is currently 29.08%.
Northrop Grumman declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback program on Wednesday, December 11th that allows the company to buyback $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the aerospace company to reacquire up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.
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.
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