Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) Cut to "Buy" at StockNews.com

StockNews.com cut shares of Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Free Report) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Saturday morning.

A number of other equities analysts have also commented on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Citigroup upped their price target on Northrop Grumman from $521.00 to $587.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Barclays increased their price target on Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $550.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 29th. TD Cowen raised Northrop Grumman to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Susquehanna increased their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $560.00 to $625.00 and gave the company a "positive" rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $546.81.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:NOC traded down $1.51 during trading on Friday, hitting $480.00. 699,634 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 861,732. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00. Northrop Grumman has a 1-year low of $418.60 and a 1-year high of $555.57. The company has a market capitalization of $69.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 0.33. The business's 50 day moving average is $506.77 and its 200-day moving average is $487.97.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The aerospace company reported $7.00 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.07 by $0.93. The company had revenue of $10 billion for 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 business's quarterly revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $6.18 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman will post 25.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd will be given a $2.06 dividend. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.72%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. Northrop Grumman's payout ratio is currently 51.05%.

Northrop Grumman declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 11th that allows the company to buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the aerospace company to repurchase up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Northrop Grumman

In related news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 1,156 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The stock was 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 of the company's stock, valued at $286,183.41. The trade was a 68.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders sold a total of 1,255 shares of company stock valued at $666,461 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Northrop Grumman

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC increased its stake in Northrop Grumman by 13.7% in the 3rd quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 330,647 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $174,605,000 after buying an additional 39,780 shares during the last quarter. Birmingham Capital Management Co. Inc. AL bought a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the third quarter valued at approximately $224,000. Copley Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the third quarter valued at approximately $479,000. American Trust lifted its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 37.6% during the third quarter. American Trust now owns 1,534 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $810,000 after acquiring an additional 419 shares during the period. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in Northrop Grumman by 6.2% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,426,270 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $1,315,729,000 after purchasing an additional 141,816 shares during the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is currently 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.