Bahl & Gaynor Inc. Sells 36,932 Shares of Northrop Grumman Corporation $NOC

Key Points

• Bahl & Gaynor Inc. reduced its holdings in Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) by 25.7%, selling 36,932 shares and retaining approximately 0.07% of the company valued at $54.78 million.
• Northrop Grumman announced a quarterly dividend of $2.31 per share, with the ex-dividend date set for September 2nd and a payout ratio of 34.06%.
• The company beat quarterly earnings expectations, reporting $7.11 EPS against an estimate of $6.84, and had a revenue of $10.35 billion, exceeding analyst expectations.

Bahl & Gaynor Inc. cut its holdings in Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC - Free Report) by 25.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 106,990 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 36,932 shares during the period. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. owned approximately 0.07% of Northrop Grumman worth $54,780,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in NOC. IMA Advisory Services Inc. bought a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the first quarter worth $27,000. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise bought a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the first quarter worth $30,000. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Bellwether Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Northrop Grumman in the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Hollencrest Capital Management lifted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 790.0% in the first quarter. Hollencrest Capital Management now owns 89 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares during the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Northrop Grumman

In related news, VP Robert J. Fleming sold 3,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $505.77, for a total transaction of $1,770,195.00. Following the sale, the vice president owned 1,827 shares of the company's stock, valued at $924,041.79. The trade was a 65.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, VP Thomas H. Jones sold 729 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $505.77, for a total transaction of $368,706.33. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 7,552 shares in the company, valued at $3,819,575.04. The trade was a 8.80% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 16,536 shares of company stock worth $8,306,857. Insiders own 0.23% of the company's stock.

Northrop Grumman Price Performance

Shares of NYSE NOC opened at $591.9790 on Friday. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a 1 year low of $426.24 and a 1 year high of $600.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 0.93. The company's 50-day moving average is $541.47 and its 200 day moving average is $504.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $84.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.82, a P/E/G ratio of 5.72 and a beta of 0.15.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The aerospace company reported $7.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.84 by $0.27. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 9.74% and a return on equity of 25.52%. The company had revenue of $10.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $10.15 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $6.36 earnings per share. Northrop Grumman's quarterly revenue was up 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. Northrop Grumman has set its FY 2025 guidance at 25.000-25.400 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Northrop Grumman Corporation will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 17th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be paid a dividend of $2.31 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 2nd. This represents a $9.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.6%. Northrop Grumman's payout ratio is presently 34.06%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on NOC shares. Susquehanna boosted their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $557.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a "positive" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $600.00 to $625.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $500.00 to $580.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 29th. Sanford C. Bernstein restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $547.00 to $565.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Northrop Grumman presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $586.79.

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding NOC? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.