Seaport Res Ptn Issues Negative Estimate for NOC Earnings

Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC - Free Report) - Analysts at Seaport Res Ptn dropped their Q1 2025 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for Northrop Grumman in a research note issued to investors on Thursday, April 17th. Seaport Res Ptn analyst R. Safran now forecasts that the aerospace company will post earnings per share of $6.27 for the quarter, down from their prior estimate of $6.42. The consensus estimate for Northrop Grumman's current full-year earnings is $28.05 per share. Seaport Res Ptn also issued estimates for Northrop Grumman's Q4 2025 earnings at $7.52 EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at $6.76 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $6.97 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $7.15 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $28.91 EPS.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.27 by $0.12. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 10.17% and a return on equity of 26.24%.

NOC has been the topic of several other research reports. Wolfe Research upgraded Northrop Grumman from an "underperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Northrop Grumman from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and raised their price objective for the company from $424.00 to $521.00 in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Northrop Grumman from $580.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Nine equities research 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 stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $544.24.

Northrop Grumman Trading Up 2.2 %

NYSE:NOC traded up $10.09 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $474.17. 1,051,935 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 883,318. The company has a market capitalization of $68.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.20. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The company's 50 day moving average is $489.82 and its two-hundred day moving average is $491.26. Northrop Grumman has a twelve month low of $418.60 and a twelve month high of $555.57.

Institutional Trading of Northrop Grumman

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. M&T Bank Corp boosted its position in Northrop Grumman by 5.4% during the third quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 19,726 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $10,417,000 after purchasing an additional 1,002 shares during the period. Tudor Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 3rd quarter worth about $1,130,000. Anchor Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 21.5% during the 3rd quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 1,504 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $794,000 after buying an additional 266 shares during the period. Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. grew its stake in Northrop Grumman by 9.1% in the 3rd quarter. Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. now owns 745 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $393,000 after buying an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB raised its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 274.1% in the 3rd quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 2,566 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $1,355,000 after acquiring an additional 1,880 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 83.40% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Northrop Grumman

In other news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 464 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $460.75, for a total transaction of $213,788.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 245 shares in the company, valued at $112,883.75. This represents a 65.44 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the business's stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 212,852 shares in the company, valued at approximately $101,243,053.80. The trade was a 1.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 4,505 shares of company stock worth $2,127,182. Insiders own 0.23% of the company's stock.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a $2.06 dividend. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.74%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. Northrop Grumman's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.08%.

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.