First Horizon Advisors Inc. Has $408,000 Stock Holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

First Horizon Advisors Inc. cut its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 42.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 870 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 640 shares during the period. First Horizon Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $408,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 0.4% during the third 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. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 0.6% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,003,360 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,581,644,000 after purchasing an additional 18,791 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position 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 valued at $1,315,729,000 after buying an additional 141,816 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in 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 valued at $427,444,000 after buying an additional 3,211 shares during the period. Finally, Two Sigma Advisers LP raised its position 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 buying an additional 372,500 shares during the period. 83.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Northrop Grumman

In related news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 192 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $429.08, for a total transaction of $82,383.36. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 709 shares in the company, valued at $304,217.72. This represents a 21.31 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders sold a total of 291 shares of company stock worth $129,184 in the last 90 days. 0.22% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently weighed in on NOC shares. Wolfe Research raised Northrop Grumman from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Barclays dropped their price target on Northrop Grumman from $550.00 to $500.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Citigroup upped their price target on Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Susquehanna dropped their price target on Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Northrop Grumman from $595.00 to $574.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Northrop Grumman presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $544.56.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

NOC opened at $449.98 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $65.14 billion, a PE ratio of 15.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.35. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $470.38 and a 200-day moving average of $497.29. Northrop Grumman Co. 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 quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.01.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 stock 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 generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

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 paid a dividend of $2.06 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $8.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.83%. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is 29.08%.

Northrop Grumman 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.