Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) Shares Acquired by Zions Bancorporation N.A.

Zions Bancorporation N.A. raised its position in shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 38.8% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 1,160 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 324 shares during the quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A.’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $544,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Northrop Grumman during the third quarter worth $36,000. Albion Financial Group UT bought a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Modus Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter valued at about $38,000. Institutional investors own 83.40% of the company’s stock.

Northrop Grumman Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE:NOC opened at $506.26 on Thursday. Northrop Grumman Co. has a twelve month low of $418.60 and a twelve month high of $555.57. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The firm has a market cap of $73.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.86, a P/E/G ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.31. The company has a 50 day moving average of $476.94 and a 200-day moving average of $492.97.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The aerospace company reported $6.39 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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, analysts anticipate 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 approved a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 11th that authorizes the company to buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the aerospace company to repurchase up to 4.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Northrop Grumman Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a dividend of $2.06 per share. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.63%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. Northrop Grumman’s payout ratio is currently 29.08%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 464 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $460.75, for a total value of $213,788.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 245 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $112,883.75. The trade was a 65.44 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were 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 represents a 1.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 4,505 shares of company stock worth $2,126,405. 0.22% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on NOC. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Barclays cut their price target on Northrop Grumman from $550.00 to $500.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Northrop Grumman from $545.00 to $547.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Truist Financial started coverage on shares of Northrop Grumman in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $544.00 price target for the company. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $579.00 to $558.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $542.88.

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.