Magnetar Financial LLC Makes New $297,000 Investment in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Magnetar Financial LLC bought a new stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 632 shares of the aerospace company's stock, valued at approximately $297,000.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. King Luther Capital Management Corp boosted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 7.6% in the third quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp now owns 1,229 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $649,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. LPL Financial LLC increased its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 4.0% in the third quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 242,983 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $128,312,000 after purchasing an additional 9,353 shares during the period. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the third quarter worth about $273,000. GM Advisory Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 3rd quarter valued at $226,000. Finally, Nwam LLC purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the third quarter worth approximately $761,000. 83.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE NOC traded up $6.81 during trading on Thursday, hitting $513.95. The company had a trading volume of 927,934 shares, compared to its average volume of 833,232. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 12 month low of $418.60 and a 12 month high of $555.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $74.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.31. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $476.94 and a 200 day simple moving average of $492.97.

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Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 10.17% and a return on equity of 26.24%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, December 11th that permits the company to buyback $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the aerospace company to reacquire up to 4.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Investors 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.60%. Northrop Grumman's payout ratio is 29.08%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on NOC shares. Argus upgraded Northrop Grumman to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $545.00 to $547.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Wolfe Research upgraded Northrop Grumman from an "underperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada raised shares of Northrop Grumman from a "sector perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $500.00 to $575.00 in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $545.06.

Insider Activity at Northrop Grumman

In related news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 192 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $429.08, for a total transaction of $82,383.36. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 709 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $304,217.72. This trade represents a 21.31 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly 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 position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 4,505 shares of company stock valued at $2,126,405 in the last three months. 0.22% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.