PDS Planning Inc Acquires 52 Shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

by · The Markets Daily

PDS Planning Inc grew its position in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC – Free Report) by 7.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 716 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the period. PDS Planning Inc’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $336,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co. grew its position in Northrop Grumman by 19.9% in the fourth quarter. Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co. now owns 16,660 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $7,818,000 after acquiring an additional 2,770 shares in the last quarter. Trinity Street Asset Management LLP boosted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Trinity Street Asset Management LLP now owns 48,367 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $22,698,000 after buying an additional 1,786 shares during the period. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the third quarter valued at approximately $604,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 2.6% during the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 212,514 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $112,222,000 after buying an additional 5,334 shares during the period. Finally, Parsons Capital Management Inc. RI boosted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 1,316.9% during the fourth quarter. Parsons Capital Management Inc. RI now owns 16,139 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $7,574,000 after buying an additional 15,000 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Northrop Grumman

In other Northrop Grumman news, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 212,852 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $101,243,053.80. This trade represents a 1.73 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 464 shares of the 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 sale, the vice president now directly owns 245 shares in the company, valued at $112,883.75. This represents a 65.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 4,505 shares of company stock valued at $2,126,405 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

NYSE NOC opened at $489.64 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 0.91. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $473.40 and its 200 day moving average price is $493.79. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 1 year low of $418.60 and a 1 year high of $555.57. The company has a market cap of $70.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.28, a PEG ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.31.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC – Get Free Report) last released its earnings results 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 year.

Northrop Grumman announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, December 11th that authorizes the company to buyback $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the aerospace company to repurchase up to 4.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The company 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 $2.06 dividend. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.68%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is 29.08%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NOC has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Truist Financial initiated coverage on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $544.00 price target for the company. Susquehanna decreased their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $545.00 to $547.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Argus raised shares of Northrop Grumman to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Northrop Grumman from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Northrop Grumman has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $542.88.

Check Out Our Latest Stock Analysis on NOC

About Northrop Grumman

(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.

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