Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) Price Target Raised to $547.00 at Wells Fargo & Company

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) had its target price raised by research analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $545.00 to $547.00 in a report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an "overweight" rating on the aerospace company's stock. Wells Fargo & Company's price objective suggests a potential upside of 12.27% from the company's current price.

A number of other brokerages have also recently issued reports on NOC. StockNews.com cut shares of Northrop Grumman from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Wolfe Research raised shares of Northrop Grumman from an "underperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Truist Financial assumed coverage on shares of Northrop Grumman in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. They set a "buy" rating and a $544.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Argus raised shares of Northrop Grumman to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $542.88.

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Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:NOC traded up $12.02 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $487.22. 1,027,141 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 996,657. The company's 50 day moving average price is $469.88 and its 200-day moving average price is $495.11. The firm has a market cap of $70.53 billion, a PE ratio of 17.19, a PEG ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.31. Northrop Grumman 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 current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 0.91.

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

Northrop Grumman declared that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Wednesday, December 11th that authorizes the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the aerospace company to buy up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $475.65, for a total transaction 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 192 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $429.08, for a total transaction of $82,383.36. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 709 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $304,217.72. This represents a 21.31 % 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 $2,126,405. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Northrop Grumman

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in NOC. Catalina Capital Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the third quarter valued at $234,000. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 9.3% in the 3rd quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,026 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $1,070,000 after buying an additional 173 shares during the period. Forte Capital LLC ADV purchased a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 3rd quarter worth $216,000. Graypoint LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. Graypoint LLC now owns 1,935 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $1,022,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the period. Finally, Malaga Cove Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 3rd quarter worth $243,000. 83.40% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Northrop Grumman

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.