Comerica Bank Sells 1,903 Shares of Northrop Grumman Corporation $NOC

Key Points

• Comerica Bank reduced its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 4.0%, owning 46,165 shares valued at approximately $23.6 million as of the latest SEC filing.
• Several institutional investors, including Vanguard Group and Wellington Management, increased their stakes in Northrop Grumman during the same quarter, highlighting strong institutional interest in the stock.
• Northrop Grumman reported a quarterly EPS of $7.11, exceeding the consensus estimate and demonstrating a 1.3% increase in revenue year-over-year.

Comerica Bank lowered its holdings in Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC - Free Report) by 4.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 46,165 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 1,903 shares during the period. Comerica Bank's holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $23,637,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Redhawk Wealth Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman by 3.0% in the first quarter. Redhawk Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 644 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $330,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. Salvus Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 1.5% in the 1st quarter. Salvus Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,349 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $691,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. IAG Wealth Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 8.4% in the first quarter. IAG Wealth Partners LLC now owns 271 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $139,000 after buying an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC boosted its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 21 shares during the period. Finally, Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG grew its holdings in Northrop Grumman by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG now owns 1,006 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $472,000 after buying 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 related news, VP Thomas H. Jones sold 729 shares of the company'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 $368,706.33. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 7,552 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,819,575.04. This represents a 8.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Robert J. Fleming sold 3,500 shares of the firm'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 completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 1,827 shares in the company, valued at approximately $924,041.79. This represents a 65.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 16,536 shares of company stock worth $8,306,857 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.23% of the company's stock.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

Shares of NOC traded up $1.16 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $587.77. 479,045 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 980,454. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $546.89 and its 200 day simple moving average is $506.93. The company has a market cap of $84.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.67, a PEG ratio of 5.68 and a beta of 0.15. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a twelve month low of $426.24 and a twelve month high of $600.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The aerospace company reported $7.11 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 business had revenue of $10.35 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.15 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $6.36 earnings per share. Northrop Grumman's revenue was up 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. 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 Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 17th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be given a $2.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 2nd. This represents a $9.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. Northrop Grumman's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.06%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on NOC shares. Bank of America upped their price target on Northrop Grumman from $550.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Northrop Grumman in a report on Monday, July 14th. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $547.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Northrop Grumman from $480.00 to $585.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $588.85.

About Northrop Grumman

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.