Bearing Point Capital LLC Acquires 448 Shares of Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC)

Key Points

• Bearing Point Capital LLC increased its stake in Northrop Grumman Corporation by 5.5% in the 1st quarter, bringing its holdings to approximately $4.37 million.
• Northrop Grumman recently posted a better-than-expected earnings report, with $7.11 earnings per share and revenue of $10.35 billion for the quarter, surpassing analyst estimates.
• Institutional investors currently own 83.40% of Northrop Grumman's stock, with several large investors recently increasing their positions in the company.

Bearing Point Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC - Free Report) by 5.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 8,531 shares of the aerospace company's stock after purchasing an additional 448 shares during the period. Bearing Point Capital LLC's holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $4,368,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Redhawk Wealth Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Northrop Grumman by 3.0% during the first quarter. Redhawk Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 644 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $330,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the last quarter. Salvus Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Northrop Grumman by 1.5% during the first quarter. Salvus Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,349 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $691,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. IAG Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in Northrop Grumman by 8.4% during the first quarter. IAG Wealth Partners LLC now owns 271 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $139,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC boosted its position in Northrop Grumman by 3.9% during the first quarter. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC now owns 553 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $283,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG boosted its position in Northrop Grumman by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG now owns 1,006 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $472,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Northrop Grumman news, VP Thomas H. Jones sold 729 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $505.77, for a total transaction of $368,706.33. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 7,552 shares in the company, valued at $3,819,575.04. This trade represents a 8.80% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Roshan S. Roeder sold 991 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $490.00, for a total value of $485,590.00. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 319 shares in the company, valued at approximately $156,310. This trade represents a 75.65% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 16,569 shares of company stock worth $8,323,150 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.23% of the company's stock.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE NOC traded up $1.04 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $569.52. 635,710 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 759,941. The firm has a market capitalization of $81.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.99, a P/E/G ratio of 5.40 and a beta of 0.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 1.04. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a 52 week low of $426.24 and a 52 week high of $576.86. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $501.34 and its 200 day simple moving average is $490.94.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The aerospace company reported $7.11 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $6.84 by $0.27. Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 25.52% and a net margin of 9.74%. The company had revenue of $10.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.15 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $6.36 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Northrop Grumman Corporation will post 28.05 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 2nd were paid a dividend of $2.31 per share. This represents a $9.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.62%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 2nd. This is a positive change from Northrop Grumman's previous quarterly dividend of $2.06. Northrop Grumman's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 34.06%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently commented on the company. Wall Street Zen cut Northrop Grumman from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Bank of America lifted their target price on Northrop Grumman from $550.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Northrop Grumman from $580.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a "hold" rating and set a $542.00 target price (down from $580.00) on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $569.33.

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.