Cwm LLC Purchases 5,508 Shares of Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC)

CWM LLC lifted its position in shares of Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC - Free Report) by 71.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 13,187 shares of the aerospace company's stock after purchasing an additional 5,508 shares during the period. CWM LLC's holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $6,752,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in NOC. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Northrop Grumman by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,677,781 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $5,949,556,000 after acquiring an additional 56,807 shares during the period. Capital International Investors boosted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 5.9% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 8,239,434 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $3,866,133,000 after purchasing an additional 461,307 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,164,700 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $1,954,452,000 after purchasing an additional 23,808 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,025,263 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $1,417,850,000 after acquiring an additional 21,903 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,807,223 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $1,317,402,000 after acquiring an additional 109,308 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.40% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NOC has been the topic of several recent research reports. Susquehanna cut their target price on Northrop Grumman from $557.00 to $540.00 and set a "positive" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Truist Financial dropped their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $600.00 to $550.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a "hold" rating and issued a $542.00 price objective (down from $580.00) on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $525.00 price objective on Northrop Grumman and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Northrop Grumman from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Northrop Grumman presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $550.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Thomas H. Jones sold 729 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $505.77, for a total value of $368,706.33. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 7,552 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $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 can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 7,500 shares of the company'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 $3,793,275.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 201,602 shares in the company, valued at approximately $101,964,243.54. The trade was a 3.59% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 16,569 shares of company stock worth $8,323,150. Insiders own 0.23% of the company's stock.

Northrop Grumman Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE NOC traded down $5.00 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $518.83. The company's stock had a trading volume of 873,903 shares, compared to its average volume of 876,287. Northrop Grumman Corporation has a 12-month low of $426.24 and a 12-month high of $555.57. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $492.64 and a 200-day moving average price of $487.29. The stock has a market capitalization of $74.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.47, a PEG ratio of 6.22 and a beta of 0.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.95 and a quick ratio of 0.84.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 22nd. The aerospace company reported $6.06 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $6.33 by ($0.27). Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 9.19% and a return on equity of 25.46%. The firm had revenue of $9.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $10.07 billion. As a group, equities analysts predict that Northrop Grumman Corporation will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd were paid a $2.31 dividend. This is an increase from Northrop Grumman's previous quarterly dividend of $2.06. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $9.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.78%. Northrop Grumman's dividend payout ratio is presently 36.46%.

Northrop Grumman Company 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.