Financial Counselors Inc. Increases Stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Financial Counselors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC - Free Report) by 2.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 69,150 shares of the aerospace company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,326 shares during the period. Financial Counselors Inc.'s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $32,451,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of NOC. Sapient Capital LLC grew its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Sapient Capital LLC now owns 2,049 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $962,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG increased its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG now owns 1,006 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $472,000 after buying an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. raised its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 900 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $422,000 after buying an additional 23 shares in the last quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC grew its position in Northrop Grumman by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC now owns 1,987 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $933,000 after acquiring an additional 23 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Baron Silver Stevens Financial Advisors LLC increased its stake in Northrop Grumman by 5.9% in the fourth quarter. Baron Silver Stevens Financial Advisors LLC now owns 432 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $203,000 after acquiring an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.40% of the company's stock.

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Insider Transactions at Northrop Grumman

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 192 shares of the company'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 transaction of $82,383.36. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 709 shares in the company, valued at $304,217.72. This represents a 21.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 212,852 shares in the company, valued at $101,243,053.80. The trade was a 1.73 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 4,505 shares of company stock valued at $2,126,405 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on NOC shares. Barclays decreased their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $550.00 to $500.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. Royal Bank of Canada raised shares of Northrop Grumman from a "sector perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $500.00 to $575.00 in a research note on Thursday. Truist Financial started coverage on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $544.00 target price on the stock. Argus upgraded Northrop Grumman to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Susquehanna dropped their target price on Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a "positive" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $545.06.

Northrop Grumman Stock Down 0.4 %

NOC stock traded down $1.96 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $511.86. The stock had a trading volume of 730,463 shares, compared to its average volume of 866,646. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 52-week low of $418.60 and a 52-week high of $555.57. The business has a 50-day moving average of $478.20 and a two-hundred day moving average of $492.84. The firm 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 debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 0.91.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 EPS 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%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a $2.06 dividend. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.61%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. Northrop Grumman's payout ratio is 29.08%.

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.