Chatterton & Associates Inc. Invests $1.20 Million in Northrop Grumman Corporation $NOC

Key Points

• Chatterton & Associates opened a new position in Northrop Grumman, buying 2,098 shares valued at about $1.20 million in the fourth quarter.
• Northrop Grumman beat Q4 expectations with EPS $7.23 (vs. $6.97 est.) and revenue of $11.71B (+9.6% YoY), and set FY2026 guidance of 27.40–27.90 EPS; analysts rate the stock a Moderate Buy with an average target of $708.65.
• The company pays a quarterly dividend of $2.31 ($9.24 annualized, ~1.3% yield) while institutional investors own about 83.4% of shares and insiders sold ~32,431 shares (~$21.97M) over the past three months.

Chatterton & Associates Inc. bought a new position in Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 2,098 shares of the aerospace company's stock, valued at approximately $1,196,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Focused Investors LLC raised its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 4.1% in the 3rd quarter. Focused Investors LLC now owns 211,800 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $129,054,000 after purchasing an additional 8,300 shares in the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 74.5% during the 3rd quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 11,060 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $6,739,000 after purchasing an additional 4,721 shares in the last quarter. Huntleigh Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the third quarter valued at about $2,818,000. Oak Thistle LLC purchased a new position in shares of Northrop Grumman during the third quarter valued at about $1,015,000. Finally, Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. increased its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 4.1% during the third quarter. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. now owns 81,747 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $49,810,000 after buying an additional 3,215 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 83.40% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Alembic Global Advisors upgraded shares of Northrop Grumman from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $662.00 price objective for the company in a report on Monday, December 15th. UBS Group upped their target price on Northrop Grumman from $777.00 to $778.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Truist Financial reissued a "hold" rating and issued a $623.00 target price (down from $688.00) on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on Northrop Grumman from $715.00 to $750.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Finally, Argus set a $785.00 price target on Northrop Grumman in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $708.65.

Northrop Grumman Trading Up 0.2%

NYSE:NOC opened at $703.88 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $99.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.16, a PEG ratio of 5.21 and a beta of 0.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.10 and a quick ratio of 1.01. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a one year low of $450.13 and a one year high of $774.00. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $709.88 and its 200 day simple moving average is $631.86.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 27th. The aerospace company reported $7.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $6.97 by $0.26. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 9.97% and a return on equity of 25.57%. The business had revenue of $11.71 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.61 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $6.39 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. Northrop Grumman has set its FY 2026 guidance at 27.400-27.900 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Corporation will post 28.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 23rd were paid a dividend of $2.31 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 23rd. This represents a $9.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. Northrop Grumman's payout ratio is presently 31.72%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Michael A. Hardesty sold 147 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $732.98, for a total transaction of $107,748.06. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 2,525 shares in the company, valued at $1,850,774.50. This trade represents a 5.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Mark A. Welsh III sold 95 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $684.52, for a total value of $65,029.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 4,203 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,877,037.56. This represents a 2.21% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 32,431 shares of company stock worth $21,969,404 over the last three months. 0.23% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Northrop Grumman

Northrop Grumman Corporation NYSE: NOC is a leading U.S.-based aerospace and defense company that designs, builds and sustains advanced systems, products and technologies for government and commercial customers. Formed through the combination of Northrop and Grumman businesses in the 1990s, the company's portfolio spans manned and unmanned aircraft, space systems, missile defense, radar and sensor systems, and integrated command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (C4ISR) solutions.

The company's work includes airframe and platform manufacturing, space hardware and satellite systems, advanced mission systems and cybersecurity services, as well as logistics, sustainment and modernization programs.

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