Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC Sells 7,253 Shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC reduced its holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC - Free Report) by 29.3% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 17,463 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 7,253 shares during the quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC's holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $9,222,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 0.4% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,140,892 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $2,186,681,000 after purchasing an additional 17,596 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc increased its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 16.0% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 1,087,913 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $474,276,000 after purchasing an additional 150,367 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 0.4% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 809,445 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $427,444,000 after purchasing an additional 3,211 shares in the last quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP grew its stake in Northrop Grumman by 102.6% in the third quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 735,600 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $388,448,000 after acquiring an additional 372,500 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in Northrop Grumman by 22.4% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 683,427 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $297,937,000 after acquiring an additional 125,262 shares during the period. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on NOC shares. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective 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. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $509.00 to $565.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $560.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Citigroup raised their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $521.00 to $587.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Susquehanna raised their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $560.00 to $625.00 and gave the company a "positive" rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Northrop Grumman currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $550.56.

Insider Transactions at Northrop Grumman

In related news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 1,156 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $532.93, for a total transaction of $616,067.08. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 537 shares in the company, valued at $286,183.41. This represents a 68.28 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In the last three months, insiders sold 1,255 shares of company stock worth $666,461. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:NOC traded down $5.92 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $473.65. 915,772 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 730,586. 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 Co. has a 12 month low of $418.60 and a 12 month high of $555.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $69.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.33. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $512.54 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $487.83.

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

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd will be given a dividend of $2.06 per share. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.74%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. Northrop Grumman's payout ratio is 51.05%.

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.