Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) Shares Acquired by Wellington Management Group LLP

Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC - Free Report) by 0.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,164,700 shares of the aerospace company's stock after purchasing an additional 23,808 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP owned 2.88% of Northrop Grumman worth $1,954,452,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Albion Financial Group UT acquired a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter worth approximately $33,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the third quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Modus Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter worth approximately $38,000. Finally, Stonebridge Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter worth approximately $42,000. 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 192 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $429.08, for a total value of $82,383.36. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 709 shares of the company's stock, valued at $304,217.72. The trade was a 21.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 212,852 shares in the company, valued at $101,243,053.80. The trade was a 1.73 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 4,505 shares of company stock valued at $2,126,405 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company's stock.

Remove Ads

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently issued reports on NOC shares. StockNews.com cut shares of Northrop Grumman from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Northrop Grumman from $545.00 to $547.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Susquehanna cut their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a "positive" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Argus upgraded Northrop Grumman to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Truist Financial began coverage on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. They set a "buy" rating and a $544.00 target price for the company. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $545.06.

Northrop Grumman Stock Up 0.2 %

NYSE:NOC traded up $0.82 on Tuesday, reaching $512.83. The stock had a trading volume of 710,530 shares, compared to its average volume of 866,771. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 12-month low of $418.60 and a 12-month high of $555.57. The stock has a market cap of $74.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.31. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The company has a 50-day moving average of $478.97 and a 200 day moving average of $492.59.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $6.27 by $0.12. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 26.24% and a net margin of 10.17%. On average, research analysts predict that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback 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 purchase up to 4.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a $2.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.61%. Northrop Grumman's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.