State of Tennessee Department of Treasury Has $28.08 Million Stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

State of Tennessee Department of Treasury raised its holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC - Free Report) by 7.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 59,840 shares of the aerospace company's stock after buying an additional 3,998 shares during the quarter. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury's holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $28,082,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. M&T Bank Corp grew its position in Northrop Grumman by 5.4% in the 3rd 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 last quarter. Tudor Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Northrop Grumman during the third quarter worth about $1,130,000. Anchor Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Northrop Grumman by 21.5% during the third quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 1,504 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $794,000 after acquiring an additional 266 shares during the period. Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. raised its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB lifted its position in shares of 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 worth $1,355,000 after acquiring an additional 1,880 shares during the period. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Northrop Grumman

In related news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 464 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $112,883.75. This trade represents a 65.44 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $475.65, for a total value of $1,783,687.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 212,852 shares of the company's stock, 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. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 4,505 shares of company stock worth $2,127,182. 0.23% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Northrop Grumman Trading Up 2.2 %

NOC traded up $10.31 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $473.38. The stock had a trading volume of 1,329,267 shares, compared to its average volume of 889,183. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $491.00 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $490.65. The stock has a market capitalization of $68.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.70, a P/E/G ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.20. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 52 week low of $418.60 and a 52 week high of $555.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.01.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The aerospace company reported $6.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $6.33 by ($0.27). Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 10.17% and a return on equity of 26.24%. The business had revenue of $9.47 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.07 billion. On average, equities analysts predict that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a dividend of $2.06 per share. 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 1.74%. Northrop Grumman's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.08%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently commented on NOC shares. StockNews.com lowered Northrop Grumman from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $580.00 to $625.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Northrop Grumman from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and upped their target price for the company from $424.00 to $521.00 in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Barclays decreased their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $550.00 to $500.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Wolfe Research raised Northrop Grumman from an "underperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $542.94.

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.