NEOS Investment Management LLC Purchases 1,239 Shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

NEOS Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC - Free Report) by 26.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,965 shares of the aerospace company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,239 shares during the period. NEOS Investment Management LLC's holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $2,799,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in NOC. Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co. increased its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 19.9% in the 4th quarter. Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co. now owns 16,660 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $7,818,000 after purchasing an additional 2,770 shares during the last quarter. Trinity Street Asset Management LLP grew its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Trinity Street Asset Management LLP now owns 48,367 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $22,698,000 after acquiring an additional 1,786 shares in the last quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $604,000. Parsons Capital Management Inc. RI grew its stake in Northrop Grumman by 1,316.9% during the 4th quarter. Parsons Capital Management Inc. RI now owns 16,139 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $7,574,000 after buying an additional 15,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Teacher Retirement System of Texas increased its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 74.4% in the 4th quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 156,149 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $73,279,000 after acquiring an additional 66,638 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 83.40% of the company's stock.

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Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

NOC stock traded down $1.12 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $511.98. 192,172 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 864,183. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $478.97 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $492.59. 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 $74.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.31. Northrop Grumman Co. has a one year low of $418.60 and a one year 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 earnings per share 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%. Equities research analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

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

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on NOC. Royal Bank of Canada raised 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 report on Thursday, March 27th. Citigroup lifted their price target on Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $579.00 to $558.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Barclays dropped their price target 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. Finally, Susquehanna cut their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a "positive" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Eight 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 company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Northrop Grumman has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $545.06.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 192 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $429.08, for a total value of $82,383.36. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 709 shares of the company's stock, valued at $304,217.72. The trade was a 21.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the 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 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 4,505 shares of company stock worth $2,126,405 in the last ninety days. 0.22% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.