California Public Employees Retirement System Grows Position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

California Public Employees Retirement System boosted its holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC - Free Report) by 0.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 614,254 shares of the aerospace company's stock after acquiring an additional 3,919 shares during the period. California Public Employees Retirement System owned 0.42% of Northrop Grumman worth $288,263,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Albion Financial Group UT acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Northrop Grumman during the third quarter worth about $36,000. Modus Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter valued at about $38,000. Finally, Stonebridge Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $42,000. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Northrop Grumman

In other news, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $475.65, for a total transaction of $1,783,687.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 212,852 shares in the company, valued at $101,243,053.80. This represents a 1.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 192 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $429.08, for a total transaction of $82,383.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 709 shares in the company, valued at approximately $304,217.72. This trade represents a 21.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 4,505 shares of company stock worth $2,126,405. Company insiders own 0.22% of the company's stock.

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Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE NOC traded up $0.82 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $512.83. The stock had a trading volume of 710,530 shares, compared to its average volume of 866,485. The firm has a market cap of $74.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.10, a PEG ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.31. Northrop Grumman Co. has a fifty-two week low of $418.60 and a fifty-two week high of $555.57. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $478.79 and a 200-day moving average of $492.64. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 earnings per share (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%. Equities research analysts predict that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, December 11th that permits the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the aerospace company to buy up to 4.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on NOC. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. UBS Group cut their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $579.00 to $558.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Barclays lowered their target price on Northrop Grumman from $550.00 to $500.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Argus raised Northrop Grumman to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Susquehanna reduced their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a "positive" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Northrop Grumman currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $545.06.

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.