Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) Announces Quarterly Dividend of $2.06

Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) announced a quarterly dividend on Tuesday, February 18th, RTT News reports. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be paid a dividend of 2.06 per share by the aerospace company on Wednesday, March 19th. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.84%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd.

Northrop Grumman has increased its dividend payment by an average of 9.3% per year over the last three years and has raised its dividend annually for the last 21 consecutive years. Northrop Grumman has a dividend payout ratio of 28.3% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect Northrop Grumman to earn $28.99 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $8.24 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 28.4%.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

Northrop Grumman stock traded up $10.48 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $448.59. The stock had a trading volume of 1,671,723 shares, compared to its average volume of 958,165. The firm has a market capitalization of $64.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.83, a P/E/G ratio of 3.69 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The firm's 50 day moving average is $471.66 and its 200 day moving average is $497.75. Northrop Grumman 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 data on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 EPS for the quarter, beating 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%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. 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 research note on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Truist Financial assumed coverage on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $544.00 target price on the stock. Barclays dropped their target price 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. Finally, Susquehanna dropped their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a "positive" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $544.56.

About Northrop Grumman

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.