Geode Capital Management LLC Buys 18,791 Shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 3,003,360 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 18,791 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC owned 2.06% of Northrop Grumman worth $1,581,644,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,140,892 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $2,186,681,000 after purchasing an additional 17,596 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 16.0% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 1,087,913 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $474,276,000 after buying an additional 150,367 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 0.4% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 809,445 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $427,444,000 after acquiring an additional 3,211 shares during the last quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP grew 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 valued at $388,448,000 after acquiring an additional 372,500 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in Northrop Grumman by 22.4% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 683,427 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $297,937,000 after acquiring an additional 125,262 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 1,156 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $532.93, for a total transaction of $616,067.08. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 537 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $286,183.41. This trade represents a 68.28 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In the last three months, insiders sold 1,255 shares of company stock valued at $666,461. Insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

Shares of Northrop Grumman stock opened at $480.18 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $69.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 0.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.09. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $511.56 and a 200-day moving average price of $487.91. Northrop Grumman Co. has a one year low of $418.60 and a one year high of $555.57.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The aerospace company reported $7.00 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.07 by $0.93. The firm had revenue of $10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.18 billion. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 26.57% and a net margin of 5.79%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $6.18 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 25.93 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd will be paid a dividend of $2.06 per share. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.72%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio is currently 51.05%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NOC has been the topic of several research analyst reports. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. StockNews.com upgraded Northrop Grumman from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. UBS Group raised their price target on Northrop Grumman from $614.00 to $643.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $540.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Alembic Global Advisors cut Northrop Grumman from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $560.00 price target for the company. in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Northrop Grumman has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $550.56.

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.