Janney Montgomery Scott LLC Makes New Investment in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC)

Janney Montgomery Scott LLC purchased a new stake in Northrop Grumman Co. (NYSE:NOC - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 64,627 shares of the aerospace company's stock, valued at approximately $33,090,000.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings 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 valued at $5,949,556,000 after acquiring an additional 56,807 shares during the period. Capital International Investors raised its stake in shares of Northrop Grumman by 5.9% during 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 during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in 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 worth $1,954,452,000 after purchasing an additional 23,808 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Northrop Grumman by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,025,263 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $1,417,850,000 after purchasing an additional 21,903 shares during the period. Finally, FMR LLC grew its holdings in 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 buying an additional 109,308 shares in the last quarter. 83.40% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Northrop Grumman Stock Down 3.8%

Shares of NYSE:NOC opened at $496.89 on Tuesday. Northrop Grumman Co. has a 12-month low of $422.19 and a 12-month high of $555.57. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $491.10 and its 200-day moving average price is $482.58. The stock has a market capitalization of $71.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.14.

Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The aerospace company reported $6.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $6.33 by ($0.27). Northrop Grumman had a return on equity of 26.24% and a net margin of 10.17%. The firm had revenue of $9.47 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.07 billion. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Northrop Grumman Co. will post 28.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Northrop Grumman Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced 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. This is a positive change from Northrop Grumman's previous quarterly dividend of $2.06. This represents a $9.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.86%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 2nd. Northrop Grumman's dividend payout ratio is currently 36.46%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NOC has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Susquehanna reduced their price objective on shares of Northrop Grumman from $557.00 to $540.00 and set a "positive" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Northrop Grumman from $580.00 to $625.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on Northrop Grumman from $575.00 to $550.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Truist Financial reduced their target price on Northrop Grumman from $600.00 to $550.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded 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, nine have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Northrop Grumman currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $545.31.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Northrop Grumman news, CEO Kathy J. Warden sold 3,750 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $495.00, for a total transaction of $1,856,250.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 209,102 shares in the company, valued at approximately $103,505,490. This represents a 1.76% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Thomas H. Jones sold 729 shares of Northrop Grumman stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the vice president now owns 7,552 shares in the company, valued at $3,819,575.04. This represents a 8.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 16,569 shares of company stock valued at $8,322,279 over the last ninety days. 0.23% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.

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