Level Four Advisory Services LLC Grows Stock Position in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Level Four Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC) by 10.5% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,700 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after acquiring an additional 162 shares during the quarter. Level Four Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $798,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Albion Financial Group UT bought a new position in Northrop Grumman in the 4th quarter worth $33,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Northrop Grumman during the third quarter valued at $36,000. Modus Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Northrop Grumman during the fourth quarter valued at about $38,000. Finally, Stonebridge Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter worth about $42,000. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Benjamin R. Davies sold 192 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $429.08, for a total transaction of $82,383.36. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 709 shares in the company, valued at approximately $304,217.72. This represents a 21.31 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the firm’s 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 212,852 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $101,243,053.80. The trade was a 1.73 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 4,505 shares of company stock valued at $2,126,405. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Northrop Grumman Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of NOC opened at $511.86 on Monday. Northrop Grumman Co. has a fifty-two week low of $418.60 and a fifty-two 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. The company’s fifty day moving average is $478.20 and its 200 day moving average is $492.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $74.09 billion, a PE ratio of 18.06, a P/E/G ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.31.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) last announced 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 net margin of 10.17% and a return on equity of 26.24%. Sell-side analysts expect 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 initiated a share buyback program on Wednesday, December 11th that allows the company to buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows 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 business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a $2.06 dividend. This represents a $8.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.61%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. Northrop Grumman’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.08%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NOC has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. UBS Group lowered their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $579.00 to $558.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com lowered shares of Northrop Grumman from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Wolfe Research raised shares of Northrop Grumman from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Susquehanna dropped their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $625.00 to $557.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $545.06.

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.