Gradient Investments LLC Sells 847 Shares of Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Gradient Investments LLC lowered its stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC - Free Report) by 3.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 26,723 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 847 shares during the quarter. Gradient Investments LLC's holdings in Northrop Grumman were worth $13,683,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of NOC. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 176.3% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 2,970 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $1,394,000 after acquiring an additional 1,895 shares in the last quarter. Caprock Group LLC bought a new stake in Northrop Grumman during the 4th quarter valued at $1,344,000. Everett Harris & Co. CA increased its stake in Northrop Grumman by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Everett Harris & Co. CA now owns 1,324 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $621,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC increased its stake in Northrop Grumman by 33.8% during the 4th quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 843 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $390,000 after purchasing an additional 213 shares in the last quarter. Finally, DAVENPORT & Co LLC increased its stake in Northrop Grumman by 7.3% during the 4th quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 4,237 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $1,989,000 after purchasing an additional 288 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.40% of the company's stock.

Northrop Grumman Trading Down 0.8%

NOC stock traded down $4.14 on Thursday, reaching $487.15. The company's stock had a trading volume of 306,553 shares, compared to its average volume of 891,607. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $492.00 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $482.47. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 12-month low of $418.60 and a 12-month high of $555.57. The firm has a market cap of $70.11 billion, a PE ratio of 17.19, a PEG ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.01.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) last announced 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). The firm had revenue of $9.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $10.07 billion. Northrop Grumman had a net margin of 10.17% and a return on equity of 26.24%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 EPS for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 2nd will be issued a dividend of $2.31 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 2nd. This is an increase from Northrop Grumman's previous quarterly dividend of $2.06. This represents a $9.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.90%. Northrop Grumman's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.46%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on NOC shares. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $575.00 to $550.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company set a $525.00 price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. UBS Group decreased their price target on Northrop Grumman from $583.00 to $571.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $580.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $587.00 to $591.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $545.31.

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.