Isthmus Partners LLC Invests $218,000 in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

11 Mar 2025, 08:00 by Scott Moore · The Cerbat Gem

Isthmus Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC – Free Report) in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor acquired 465 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $218,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Two Sigma Advisers LP lifted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 102.6% during the third quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 735,600 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $388,448,000 after purchasing an additional 372,500 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter worth approximately $171,580,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter worth approximately $94,370,000. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 6.2% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,426,270 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,315,729,000 after purchasing an additional 141,816 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wedge Capital Management L L P NC purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter worth approximately $66,171,000. 83.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 464 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $460.75, for a total value of $213,788.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 245 shares in the company, valued at $112,883.75. This trade represents a 65.44 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 6th. The stock was 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 owns 212,852 shares in the company, valued at approximately $101,243,053.80. This trade represents a 1.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 4,505 shares of company stock worth $2,126,405. 0.22% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Northrop Grumman Stock Up 1.9 %

Shares of NYSE:NOC opened at $495.98 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 52-week low of $418.60 and a 52-week high of $555.57. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $470.47 and its 200-day simple moving average is $494.93. The company has a market capitalization of $71.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.50, a P/E/G ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.31.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.27 by $0.12. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 26.24% and a net margin of 10.17%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 11th that allows the company to buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the aerospace company to reacquire up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a dividend of $2.06 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.66%. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.08%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com cut Northrop Grumman from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Argus upgraded Northrop Grumman to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Susquehanna reduced their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Barclays cut their price target on Northrop Grumman from $550.00 to $500.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Finally, UBS Group cut their price target on Northrop Grumman from $579.00 to $558.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $542.88.

Read Our Latest Report on NOC

Northrop Grumman Profile

(Free Report)

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.