Regent Peak Wealth Advisors LLC Has $344,000 Position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Regent Peak Wealth Advisors LLC lowered its stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC - Free Report) by 82.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 732 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 3,514 shares during the period. Regent Peak Wealth Advisors LLC's holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $344,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Northrop Grumman during the 3rd quarter valued at $36,000. Modus Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter valued at $38,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the third quarter worth $40,000. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the third quarter valued at $53,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.40% of the company's stock.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

NOC stock traded up $21.78 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $504.16. 1,309,771 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 820,172. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $479.52 and a 200-day simple moving average of $494.82. 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 twelve month low of $418.60 and a twelve month high of $555.57. The stock has a market capitalization of $73.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 0.35.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The aerospace company reported $7.00 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $6.07 by $0.93. The firm had revenue of $10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.18 billion. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 5.79% and a return on equity of 26.57%. The business's revenue was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $6.18 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 25.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were issued a $2.06 dividend. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 2nd. Northrop Grumman's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 51.05%.

Northrop Grumman declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 11th that permits the company to buyback $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits 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 leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on NOC. Citigroup raised Northrop Grumman from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $587.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $550.00 to $500.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $614.00 to $643.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, TD Cowen upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $550.94.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 1,156 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 approximately $286,183.41. The trade was a 68.28 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders have sold a total of 1,255 shares of company stock valued at $663,859 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.22% of the company's stock.

Northrop Grumman 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.