Altfest L J & Co. Inc. Raises Stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Altfest L J & Co. Inc. increased its position in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 30.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,071 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 248 shares during the period. Altfest L J & Co. Inc.’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $501,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of NOC. London Co. of Virginia bought a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the third quarter worth $165,786,000. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 74.7% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,174,556 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $517,028,000 after purchasing an additional 502,060 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. lifted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 19.7% in the fourth quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 16,515 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $7,731,000 after buying an additional 2,723 shares in the last quarter. Comerica Bank purchased a new position in Northrop Grumman during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $59,403,000. Finally, Phraction Management LLC bought a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $677,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE NOC traded up $1.18 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $478.54. 233,276 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 939,958. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $457.07 and a 200 day moving average of $461.20. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 1 year low of $414.56 and a 1 year high of $496.89. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. The stock has a market cap of $71.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.58, a P/E/G ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 0.34.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 25th. The aerospace company reported $6.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.80 by $0.47. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 5.23% and a return on equity of 23.07%. The firm had revenue of $10.64 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.43 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $7.50 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 24.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 26th were paid a $1.87 dividend. This represents a $7.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.56%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 23rd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 55.49%.

Insider Transactions at Northrop Grumman

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 711 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $453.22, for a total transaction of $322,239.42. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 2,024 shares in the company, valued at approximately $917,317.28. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 711 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $453.22, for a total value of $322,239.42. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,024 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $917,317.28. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Kathryn G. Simpson sold 1,273 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $450.37, for a total transaction of $573,321.01. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,735 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,231,761.95. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 3,149 shares of company stock worth $1,421,147. Insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on NOC shares. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $505.00 to $475.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded Northrop Grumman from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $541.00 to $473.00 in a research report on Friday, December 15th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $450.00 price objective (down from $515.00) on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research note on Friday, January 26th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, January 29th. Finally, Susquehanna dropped their target price on Northrop Grumman from $560.00 to $540.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Northrop Grumman presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $494.33.

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.