Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) Given Average Rating of "Hold" by Analysts

Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) has earned a consensus recommendation of "Hold" from the sixteen brokerages that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, ten have given a hold recommendation and five have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $546.81.

A number of research firms recently commented on NOC. Citigroup boosted their price target on Northrop Grumman from $521.00 to $587.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Alembic Global Advisors downgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from an "overweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $560.00 price target for the company. in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Northrop Grumman from $565.00 to $505.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $540.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

Northrop Grumman stock traded down $4.62 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $475.56. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,058,365 shares, compared to its average volume of 860,501. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $510.29 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $488.01. Northrop Grumman has a 1-year low of $418.60 and a 1-year high of $555.57. The company has a market cap of $69.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.46, a PEG ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 0.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 0.97.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The aerospace company reported $7.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.07 by $0.93. The business had revenue of $10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $10.18 billion. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 26.57% and a net margin of 5.79%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $6.18 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Northrop Grumman will post 25.93 earnings per share for the current year.

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

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be paid a $2.06 dividend. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.73%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. Northrop Grumman's dividend payout ratio is currently 51.05%.

Insider Activity at Northrop Grumman

In related news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 1,156 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $532.93, for a total transaction of $616,067.08. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 537 shares in the company, valued at $286,183.41. The trade was a 68.28 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders have sold a total of 1,255 shares of company stock worth $666,461 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Northrop Grumman

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 2.6% during the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 212,514 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $112,222,000 after purchasing an additional 5,334 shares during the period. AIA Group Ltd raised its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 20.0% during the third quarter. AIA Group Ltd now owns 7,458 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $3,938,000 after buying an additional 1,242 shares during the last quarter. Aviso Wealth Management lifted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 110.7% in the second quarter. Aviso Wealth Management now owns 1,896 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $827,000 after buying an additional 996 shares in the last quarter. Susquehanna International Securities Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the second quarter valued at about $1,133,000. Finally, Meridian Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the third quarter worth about $4,089,000. 83.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.