Farringdon Capital Ltd. Takes Position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Farringdon Capital Ltd. acquired a new stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 844 shares of the aerospace company's stock, valued at approximately $396,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NOC. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Albion Financial Group UT bought a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Modus Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter worth $38,000. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter valued at $42,000. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. grew its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 291.7% during the 4th quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 94 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the period. 83.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NOC has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. UBS Group decreased their target price on Northrop Grumman from $583.00 to $571.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target 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. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded Northrop Grumman from a "sector perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $500.00 to $575.00 in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Northrop Grumman from $580.00 to $625.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from an "underperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Northrop Grumman presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $548.65.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

Northrop Grumman stock traded up $11.05 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $475.13. 846,286 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 882,488. The company's fifty day moving average is $489.82 and its 200-day moving average is $491.26. 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 firm has a market cap of $68.48 billion, a PE ratio of 16.77, a PEG ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.20.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $6.27 by $0.12. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 26.24% and a net margin of 10.17%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued 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 1.73%. Northrop Grumman's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.08%.

Insider Transactions at Northrop Grumman

In other news, 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 value of $1,783,687.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 212,852 shares of the company's stock, valued at $101,243,053.80. This represents a 1.73 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 192 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $429.08, for a total value of $82,383.36. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 709 shares in the company, valued at approximately $304,217.72. This represents a 21.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 4,505 shares of company stock valued at $2,127,182. Company insiders own 0.23% of the company's stock.

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.