Goldman Sachs Group Inc. Grows Stock Holdings in Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC)

Key Points

• Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its holdings in Northrop Grumman Corporation by 12.2%, now owning approximately 0.55% of the company valued at $405.87 million.
• A significant surge in investment was noted from GAMMA Investing LLC, which boosted its stake by 55,522.3%, now holding shares worth $778.34 million.
• Northrop Grumman recently announced a quarterly dividend increase to $2.31 per share, up from $2.06, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of 1.6%.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC - Free Report) by 12.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 792,707 shares of the aerospace company's stock after buying an additional 86,215 shares during the quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. owned about 0.55% of Northrop Grumman worth $405,874,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Capital International Investors lifted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 5.9% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 8,239,434 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $3,866,133,000 after purchasing an additional 461,307 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 28.5% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,030,644 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $952,962,000 after purchasing an additional 450,858 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 55,522.3% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,520,158 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $778,336,000 after purchasing an additional 1,517,425 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 10.4% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,251,050 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $587,105,000 after purchasing an additional 118,211 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Two Sigma Advisers LP lifted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 20.8% in the 4th quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 888,700 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $417,058,000 after purchasing an additional 153,100 shares in the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Northrop Grumman Trading Down 1.0%

Shares of NOC traded down $6.09 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $581.29. 749,424 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 876,217. The company's fifty day moving average price is $522.66 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $497.85. The company has a market capitalization of $83.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.51 and a beta of 0.15. 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 Corporation has a 12 month low of $426.24 and a 12 month high of $594.68.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The aerospace company reported $7.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $10.15 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $6.36 EPS. Northrop Grumman's revenue was up 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Northrop Grumman Corporation will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northrop Grumman Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd were given a dividend of $2.31 per share. 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. Northrop Grumman's dividend payout ratio is 34.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Northrop Grumman

In related news, VP Roshan S. Roeder sold 991 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $490.00, for a total transaction of $485,590.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 319 shares of the company's stock, valued at $156,310. This trade represents a 75.65% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 7,500 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company's stock, valued at $101,964,243.54. This trade represents a 3.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 16,536 shares of company stock valued at $8,306,857. Insiders own 0.23% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Robert W. Baird raised 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. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a "hold" rating and set a $542.00 price objective (down previously from $580.00) on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $580.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of Northrop Grumman in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Northrop Grumman from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Northrop Grumman currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $586.79.

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.